The Mystery Which Binds
by CoffeeManiac
Summary: Sam and Dean think they are working a hunt involving demons but the real case is much more personal. Story is complete. New chapters will be submitted about every other day. No slash. Reviews are welcome.
1. Chapter 1

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and Comments are welcome and appreciated.

Alone by: Edgar Allan Poe

From childhood's hour I have not been  
>As others were; I have not seen<br>As others saw; I could not bring  
>My passions from a common spring.<br>From the same source I have not taken  
>My sorrow; I could not awaken<br>My heart to joy at the same tone;  
>And all I loved, I loved alone.<br>Then- in my childhood, in the dawn  
>Of a most stormy life- was drawn<br>From every depth of good and ill  
>The mystery which binds me still:<br>From the torrent, or the fountain,  
>From the red cliff of the mountain,<br>From the sun that round me rolled  
>In its autumn tint of gold,<br>From the lightning in the sky  
>As it passed me flying by,<br>From the thunder and the storm,  
>And the cloud that took the form<br>(When the rest of Heaven was blue)  
>Of a demon in my view.<p>

Part 1

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It took a while for Dean to convince Sam that leaving Castiel at the Northern State hospital under Meg's watch was okay. Sam felt guilty having his nightmare shifted into the angel, but Dean didn't. Cas broke the wall that Death had put in place to protect Sam. There may have been some cracks in the plaster but the wall might have remained if Cas hadn't interfered. So, Dean didn't feel guilty and he made a decision for all of them. Meg would stay with Castiel while Dean took Sam to Rufus' cabin for some much needed recuperation time.

Frazzled and feeling unbalanced, Dean needed to regroup while Sam needed to sleep, eat and get his strength back. The time Sam spent in the psychiatric hospital had been filled with hallucinations, a ghost hunt and a battleground with demons. It was more than anyone should have to deal with, especially in his weakened state.

Dean started the drive from Indiana to Montana determined to go straight through. He wanted to put distance between the hospital and his brother, he wanted to leave the trauma in his rear view but after twelve hours or so Sam argued and cajoled until Dean admitted he needed to sleep. It added six hours to the trip but at least they made it alive.

Dean didn't feel safe until they reached the cabin. Between the Leviathan and the demons at the hospital, he felt like public enemy #1, and with Sam at only half-strength, he worried every moment while they were on the road.

When they finally reached the cabin, Dean salted the doors and windows, and painted enough warding symbols to keep out everything including Big Foot and Ted Bundy. He ignored Sam when his brother said that he was overreacting. Dean already knew that he was in full-blown protective mode and he couldn't stop.

Rufus's cabin lacked some amenities like dependable electricity and good plumbing. But, it had running water for showers, even if the showers were cold, propane connections for the stove and refrigerator, and a fireplace for heat.

Calling it rustic gave it a lot of charm that didn't really exist but there were beds, a couch and a small television. The TV only broadcast random channels but it was better than nothing.

The wood floors and wood walls were scratched and dented. The ceiling sagged from too much rain and snow over the years. Dean was fairly sure if he pulled a wall out then they would be inundated with creepy crawlies and mold. But all of that didn't matter because it was a relatively safe roof over their heads. Something they both needed.

Or maybe it was only Dean. But, Sam's hallucinations had almost killed him. And then demons had come to the hospital to finish the job. If they hadn't lucked into finding Cas, Dean would be burning his brother's body now instead of locking down Rufus's cabin. So, if Dean needed extra security then Sam could suck it up and deal with it.

Sam being Sam didn't do that, of course. He stubbornly refused to be treated like an invalid. He hated every nice thing that Dean tried to do for him. Dean responded by ignoring his brother's complaints.

It took complete exhaustion for Sam to finally surrender. He stumbled, swooning like a femme fatale and landed on the couch. Dean didn't know which one of them was more surprised. Sam looked up from where he sat, all wide eyed and reminding Dean of a little kid.

"Sleep?" Dean said

"Yeah, I think so."

Sam settled into the nest that Dean had built on the couch and fell asleep.

Twenty three hours after arriving at Rufus' cabin, Sam's cell rang which was odd because they changed phones on a daily basis. It was also odd because the only person they kept informed of their new numbers was a hunter named Garth Fitzgerald and Dean had already told Garth they were taking some time off.

The ringing woke Sam up so he answered with a bleary "hello" then waved at Dean as he greeted Lee Chambers. Lee was a hunter. A few weeks earlier he had run into trouble tracking a couple Vetala. Dean and Sam had rescued him and in the process, Dean had befriended Lee's young daughter.

"Are they all right," Dean asked while Sam was still on the phone. "Krissy?"

"They're fine, Dean. Pipe down a minute."

After that, Sam spent the next several minutes talking to Lee and writing notes on the back of a magazine. When he finally hung up, Sam rubbed his face and stood up. He still looked pale.

"This is a little unbelievable even by our standards," Sam said.

"Then I can't wait to hear about it."

Dean sat down on the end of the couch and drank from Bobby's flask.

"He says the crossroads demons are creating some kind of entertainment center where they specialize in wish fulfillment."

"What kind of entertainment center? Sounds like porn."

"Everything sounds like porn to you. Entertainment center is probably the wrong term. It sounds more like those pizza chains that have all the games and stuff for kids."

Dean grinned. "Plucky's."

Sam scowled. "Yeah."

"Didn't we already do this with that place? Grant wishes, people die."

"Yeah, but this is different. It's for adults and the big wish costs your soul."

Dean shook his head. "How would that even work?" Before Sam could answer, Dean continued. "And how does Lee know about it? For that matter, where did he get your number?"

"He says he was registering Krissy for school and on his way home, he overheard some demons talking. He followed them and got this story."

"He just happened to hear demons talking?"

"Yeah, I thought that was odd too. But, he sounded pretty convinced. Right place, right time, I guess. Anyway he's trying to get out of hunting because of his daughter, so he flipped it to us."

"Doesn't sound right. How did he get your number?"

"Garth gave it to him."

"Damn it, I told Garth to leave us alone for a few days."

"You did?"

Dean shrugged.

"You didn't have to do that," Sam said.

Dean shrugged again then moved on. "Okay, so they build these little "deal factories" and the adults play games for wishes. I guess it'd be rigged so they win, right? So, they can get down to the deal."

"Probably."

"But, they don't exist yet?"

"According to Lee it's still in the planning stage. He doesn't know where they're supposed to start building either."

"Could he give us less to go on?"

Sam smiled. "He thinks he knows the name of the architectural firm that's handling it."

Sam scooped his laptop off the kitchen table and brought it back to the couch. He scooted into the back corner and put his feet on the coffee table before resting the device on his legs.

Dean watched him, not liking his sluggish movements or his pasty complexion.

"You know this could probably wait another day," Dean said.

"We don't know that."

Sam spent the next several hours clicking away at his computer. Somehow, he managed to connect to the internet even out in the wilds of Montana. Finding Griffith and Associates Architectural Firm was the easy part. After that it was a matter of breaking into their online records for some kind of thread that might lead to plans for an adult arcade. Sam accomplished that and then switched over to the City of Keuka in upstate New York where the building permits had been filed.

Dean managed to get him to stop long enough to eat a can of Hormel chili but then Sam went back to his research until finally, he couldn't force his eyes to stay open any longer. When he went to make a pot of coffee, Dean stood in his way.

"Seriously, man, you have to sleep."

"Dean, we need to know…"

"It'll still be there in the morning. You look like death so I know your mind isn't clipping away at a good pace anymore. Just sleep for a few hours so you don't miss anything, all right?"

Sam frowned and shifted like he was going to argue but Dean knew his brother. If Sam thought he might make a mistake then he'd stop. Sam gave up the coffee and settled into his nest on the couch. A few minutes later the soft snores buried in an old pillow told Dean he had done the right thing.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Several hours later when morning broke through the trees around the cabin, Dean lay on the cot near the fireplace and thought about making coffee. He heard Sam groan from the couch. Then his soft voice disturbed the silence of the morning. Dean was sure he hadn't meant to be heard.

"I hate this," he whispered and sighed.

"Hate what?" Dean asked.

"Being sick."

Dean knew it was true. Sam despised feeling ill and had for as long as Dean could remember.

"Do you remember when I threw up in the Impala?" Sam asked.

"You mean when you were little? Like five or something?"

"Yeah. My stomach hurt and I couldn't tell Dad."

Dean rolled on to his side. "Why couldn't you tell him? He was right there."

"He was in a bad mood. I remember he kept sniping at you so I just kept it to myself."

"No you didn't," Dean said, wryly, thinking about the first time he heard the words "projectile vomiting."

Sam chuckled. "Dad made you clean it up."

"He helped. But, it was worse for you. You were so sick and he buckled you into the front seat because he was afraid you'd wander on to the freeway. You kept saying that the smell hurt your tummy." Dean laughed as he pictured his tiny brother trying to hold his nose between pudgy fingers to block out the vile odor.

"And he wouldn't stop, remember?" Sam said. "He had to get to that next hunt so he made you sit in the back with me. It seemed like we drove for hours and all he did was bitch at you for not telling him that I was sick."

"Yeah, well, Dad was like you. Goal oriented. Of course I would have told him you were sick if you had told me."

The memory of finally arriving at a motel ran through Dean's mind. Dad picked Sam up and carried him into the room. He put him in a warm shower, gave him some liquid medicine, dressed him in pajamas and put him to bed. Then he went out to the trunk and grabbed some canned soups and plastic bowls. He came back in and gave them to Dean and told him to make sure that Sam ate.

Dad left after that and didn't come back until the middle of the night.

"So, what's wrong with you, anyway?" Dean asked, letting the memory fade, as he put his feet on the floor.

"I'm fine."

Just like that the moment passed and Sam returned to stoicism. He stood up, padded off to the bathroom then returned to the kitchen to make coffee. Dean waited until the bathroom was open and went to take a lukewarm shower. They hadn't quite managed to get the water heater working properly.

Dean spent the next few hours trying to figure out Dick Roman's next move. He played with the information that Frank Devereaux had provided, writing down scenarios then seeing if they fit Leviathan behavior. Sam continued looking into Griffith Architecture and studying building plans. When he flipped the laptop closed and sat back, Dean set down the photos he'd been studying.

"I don't know," Sam said. "Nothing matches. I mean, I'm no expert on video arcades but there would have to be a lot of electricity, right?"

"Yeah, there would. Maybe there's nothing to this. Lee could have gotten it wrong."

"I think we should go there. To Keuka. Talk to people. See if they've had any unusual client requests. Heck, just see what they're working on up close and personal."

"Do you know how far it is to upstate New York?"

"So what? We're not working anything here."

"Other than Bobby's murder, you mean," Dean said, a ping of anger running up his spine.

Sam rubbed his eyes. "We're not getting anywhere with that. I want to find Dick Roman too but right now? I just don't see how we're doing that."

"But, this maybe from Lee Chambers? That's what we want to pursue?"

"The source is solid. Griffith Architectural exists. What's it going to hurt to look into it?"

Dean sighed. He didn't want to split their time, especially on something so flimsy. He would rather have Sam working on getting well. But, they didn't have any new leads on how to kill Leviathan or take out Dick Roman. Sam was obviously getting antsy and Dean didn't think he'd rest anymore.

An hour later they had the car ready to go and were heading towards the I-90.

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Two hours into the trip Dean pulled off the freeway and into a convenience store parking lot. He intended to drive well into the night and wanted coffee and snacks. Sam had his nose buried in his laptop and didn't notice the change until they were turning off the exit on to a side road that led to the store. He looked up and around and rubbed his eyes.

"Hungry," Dean said as he parked. "Need anything?"

"Juice," Sam answered. He closed his computer and set it aside before climbing out of the car. He stretched and then pointed towards the bathroom.

"'kay," Dean said before heading inside.

Sam followed the restroom signs around to the back of the building. He passed the women's room door first, finding two soccer mom types standing outside chattering at each other about having to wait. He continued to the men's room which was not occupied and pushed the door open. Just as he took one step inside something collided with him from behind and he stumbled into the block wall. He caught himself with both hands then spun around to face whatever had shoved him. He only made it halfway before hands dug into his shirt and threw him next to the urinal. He just missed the porcelain and landed in a heap between it and the sink. Scrambling around, he found the two soccer moms, black eyes staring back at him. The blonde grabbed his leg, yanking with demon strength to drag him back into the middle of the bathroom floor. The red head delivered a sharp kick into his side that had Sam curling up even as he scraped his feet against the floor trying to stand up.

He didn't have any salt or holy water on him. His jacket with his supply of both was laying in the backseat of the stolen Ford they were driving.

The red head growled as she kicked out again. Sam gripped her ankle before the blow hit and twisted sending her wheeling into the door jamb. The blonde was momentarily distracted by her companion and Sam shoved out with a hard jab, kicking her square in the face. She cocked her head, looking more surprised than hurt despite the blood streaming from her nose. With both hands she grabbed Sam's shirt and dragged him up only to slam him hard into the closest wall. Her small stature saved him from hitting his head but the momentum knocked the breath out of him. His legs gave out and he sank towards the floor. Both of the women drew knives out, the red head lifted her arm and Sam flung his own arms over himself hoping to block as he kicked towards her.

A moment later the sound of screaming forced Sam to shuffle his way towards the wall. He looked up in time to see Dean drenching the two demons in holy water. Dean spun clockwise as he slit the throat of the blonde then drove the demon killing knife into the chest of the red head. The red head collapsed in a rage of sound while the blonde choked as their host bodies died with them.

Dean held his hand out and pulled Sam up as they clasped grips.

"You all right?" Dean asked, sounding breathless.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good."

Dean stayed in Sam's personal space as he examined his face and put a hand against his forehead. Sam scowled as he knocked Dean's hand away and stepped back.

"I said I'm all right."

"What the hell just happened?" Dean said, still looking unhappy.

"I don't know. They were standing outside the women's room when I passed and then they jumped me."

"Why?"

Sam shrugged as the new bruises started throbbing. He winced silently then said, "I don't know."

"It's weird they'd jump you out here like this. They usually stay clear unless…"

"Maybe they know where we're going."

"But, how did they find us?"

Sam shrugged. He didn't know.

"Come on. Let's get some distance," Dean said. Sam agreed. He didn't want to be caught with two dead bodies.

"How'd you even know to…" Sam started to ask.

"I didn't," Dean said. "I was looking for a quiet place to make a call."

As they reached the car, adrenaline drained out of Sam leaving his limbs shaking and weak. He collapsed into the passenger's side of the car, feeling sweat trickle down his neck. The injuries were nothing, barely worth acknowledging, except for the chorus of pain shooting through his torso.

"Sammy," Dean's voice broke through his focus. He could tell it wasn't the first time his name had been said.

"I'm okay," he said.

"Yeah, I can see that." Dean's dry answer sounded like an accusation.

"I've been in a lot worse shape than this, Dean."

"Not when you're just coming off hell visions or after being at death's door."

"I'm a little weak, okay, but I'm fine. I've been tossed around by demons before. Nothing's broken, no concussion. Just let it go."

"I don't like getting ambushed, Sam," Dean said as he pulled out of the parking lot. "How'd they know where we'd be? Why would they care?"

"A location spell isn't that hard to do. I don't know why they'd bother though. There's no reason why they should know what we're working on."

"Unless it's a trap. What if Lee's information was planted? Maybe they wanted him to contact us."

"Then why jump us here? Why point us to New York just to try and kill us at a random rest stop? For that matter, how would they even know we were going to stop there?"

Dean just shook his head. He didn't have any more answers than Sam did. As they entered the freeway again, Sam fished his laptop out of the backseat.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are welcome and appreciated.

Part 2

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About thirty hours later, Dean parked on the curb in front of Griffith and Associates. He climbed out and fed a few coins into the parking meter. The attack by the demons had left Sam achy and uncomfortable and while aspirin cured most of it he was still on a slow motion setting. For that reason, when they arrived in Keuka, Dean dropped Sam off at a motel.

"I'll see what it looks like while you do some more research," Dean said. He had started to regret driving straight through to New York. In retrospect having Sam drive the remaining eight hours while Dean slept seemed unnecessary. And from the way Sam was moving, it might have been too much for him.

Griffith occupied a space in the middle of a small town block with two floors and a brick façade. The dome-shaped windows on the top floor were covered by curtains. The rectangular windows on the ground floor were hand painted with the company name. Double glass doors slid open when Dean stepped on the pressure plate.

He walked up to the front desk where a pretty young woman smiled as she took off her black framed glasses. Dean suspected they were for fashion purposes only. The black and gold nameplate advertised her as Emily Perkins.

"Hi Emily," Dean said, producing a fake ID from inside his shirt pocket. "I'm from the building inspector's office."

"Where's Jim?" she asked.

Dean smiled at her. "Not the Keuka office… the county office. I need to speak with William Griffith about a project he's working on."

"Mr. Griffith retired last year," Emily said. "You folks probably need to update your records."

"I guess so," Dean said, internally cursing Sam and his faulty information. "So, who should I be talking to, Emily?"

"Quincy Walters is the president and chairman now."

"Is he available?"

"Let me check. Which project is this about?"

"The entertainment center. I don't know what they're planning to call it."

"Oh, I do." Emily blinked and her eyes turned black. "We're calling it Dead Winchesters."

Startled, Dean stepped back from the counter. He drew the demon knife out of his belt. As she walked around the desk, he spotted two more demons, both male, coming from either side of the lobby. The short, dark-haired one on his right hissed. Dean kept moving towards the door knowing that taking on three of Hell's minions by himself was risky at best. The one that hissed leapt at him and Dean slashed the knife around catching him high on the chest. He screamed out as he clutched the gaping, burning hole and stumbled into Dean. Dean yanked the knife out and jabbed it into his neck. The demon screeched as he glowed and died. Jumping away from the falling body, Dean found Emily and a tall brown haired demon stretching towards him. He spun away grabbing a trash can and flung it at Emily while he slashed at the second male. He only caught the demon's arm but it was enough to allow Dean to trip out on to the street. He ran to the ugly Ford, yanking his cell phone out as he climbed into the driver's side.

Sam answered on the second ring.

"Sammy, we definitely got something. Demons were waiting for me at Griffith."

"What? Are you all right?"

"What the hell is going on?"

"I'll call Lee. Maybe there's something more he can…crap!"

"Sam?"

"Demons outside. Hurry up."

With that the phone went dead. Dean threw his cell on to the seat beside him and stepped on the gas. Heart pounding and mouth dry with fear, Dean sped to their motel. Since he had the knife, Sam was going to be fighting with just salt and holy water.

Dean made a hard right into the motel parking lot. He found Sam standing on top of a car swinging a canteen back and forth spraying three demons with holy water. The possessed humans growled and flinched but didn't flee. Dean rolled out of the car with the demon knife clutched in his fist. He attacked the closest one to him, a middle-aged, paunchy male. He drove the knife into the host's neck before the demon realized he was there. Screaming out, smoke streaming from the wound and it crumpled on to the pavement. The other two took note of his presence and while the lone female leapt on to the car towards Sam, the remaining male tackled Dean who went down hard against the sidewalk.

The demon grabbed his wrist and twisted while Dean shoved backward trying to get room to throw a punch. Dean yelled out in pain when his arm was turned too far. He dropped the knife cursing as it clattered to the ground. He threw his whole body into an upward thrust and succeeded in getting the demon beneath him. It snarled and growled with fetid breath as Dean fought to keep it down. He looked around for the knife then leaped off the struggling body hoping to land close enough to get the knife back in his hand.

As Dean tumbled to the side the demon followed and kicked him under the ribs. Dean flipped on to his back and the demon yanked him up by his jacket then slammed him into the plaster wall of the building leaving a crack where Dean's shoulders collided. Just as Dean brought his legs up to kick him backward, the demon cried out. Its eyes turned from black to glowing red before it collapsed taking Dean with it.

Sam stood behind it holding the knife. He was breathing hard as he bent at the waist and cursed. Dean pushed away from the wall and rolled his shoulders. He cursed at the tightness he felt through his torso knowing the pain was only going to get worse. He spotted the female lying lifeless a few feet away.

"How'd they know?" Dean said, breathing hard from adrenaline and exertion.

"I don't know. GPS? Our phones?" Sam said.

"Gotta be something. The rest stop, now here? They're tracking us." Dean said.

Sam pulled his cell out and checked the settings. He turned off the GPS. Dean took the phone out of his hand, dropped it on the ground and stomped on it. Then he did the same with the phone he was using for daily use. Then he took another phone out of his inside jacket pocket and smashed it too.

"Not taking any chances," he said.

He had dropped Sam before going to Griffith but they hadn't unpacked the car yet so there was nothing to retrieve from the room.

Dean walked to the driver's side of the car and Sam went to the passenger side. Dean put the car in gear and drove away leaving the three bodies behind.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Dean found a motel a few miles outside of town. He booked the room and the two of them settled inside. Dean noticed the seventies style wood paneling and the yellowing wallpaper as he set his bag down then headed for the bathroom.

He needed a hot shower to loosen up the muscles in his back. He didn't know what Sam needed but at that moment he was thinking about himself. He was inexplicably and irrationally annoyed with his brother for convincing him to take this case.

Neither of them had broached the subject of the attacks or the demon infiltration at the architects' office.

Dean let the heat seep into his muscles and sighed. The shower pelted him with a hard spray and it felt good on his skin. He stayed there longer than necessary, not anxious to start figuring out what to do next. Sam still wasn't back to fighting fit and whether his brother admitted it, his health limited their options.

They needed to know if the tip from Lee was true or if it was a trap to get them into town. If it was true, they needed to know where and when the "soul" factory was going to be built. If it wasn't true then they needed to know why demons were suddenly trying to kill them rather than just waiting on random opportunity.

If they could find out the location of "Let's Make a Demon Deal" then they could do some incantations in order to turn the ground holy which would limit a lot of demon activity. Then they could put some protection wards in place to keep out the rest. Finding the architect of the whole plan and sending him back to Hell was mandatory too.

On the drive to Keuka, Sam pointed out that even if they succeeded in stopping the construction, the demons could just build someplace else but Dean figured if they made the project difficult enough then the demons would give up the idea.

Dean turned off the shower and wrapped a thin towel around his waist. He used a second one to dry his hair before stepping into the main room. A chill ran across his body as he left the steamy bathroom.

Sam was sitting on the bed with his back to the headboard and his laptop resting on his legs. He glanced towards Dean then resumed concentrating on the screen. His eyes were scrunched up showing tiny lines around the edges. His lips were tight and thin. A slight but noticeable tremor ran through his hands as he clicked the mouse and keyboard.

"Give it up, Sammy. Take a shower and I'll get us some grub. What do ya say?"

"Almost done," his brother said.

"With what? What do you have there?"

"I think I found the building permits. I figured they'd need games and stuff for an amusement center so I started digging around for companies that would provide them. Anyway, I traced any large orders for this area and there was only one that seemed big enough and that lead me to a place called "Grab The Light". It's like an old video arcade, kind of a throwback to the carnival arcades."

"Let me guess, Griffith is handling the architecture."

"Yep. And it's being built one town over in Haudenville."

"'Grab The Light', huh?"

"Yeah. Catchy, I guess if you figure the light is hell fire."

Dean grabbed clothes out of his bag. He returned to the bathroom to dress but left the door open so they could hear each other.

"What do you want for dinner?" Dean asked.

"Subs. Like tuna salad or something."

"Okay. I'll go. We need beer too. Why don't you take a shower? If you squint any harder, you'll get an aneurysm."

Sam frowned as he looked away from the laptop screen. "How would squinting give me…"

"Just go with it, Sam. Your battery is still drained and we don't know what we're dealing with here."

Sam nodded as he closed the lid on his computer. Dean frowned in surprise because his brother never just gave in, but he didn't question it.

Dressed in jeans, black t-shirt and open flannel, Dean grabbed the keys to the car and his cell phone.

"Don't open up for anybody," he said.

"Don't worry," Sam said.

"Yeah, I'll stop breathing too," Dean said, mumbling to himself as he closed the room door.

He walked towards his car thinking that they should have skipped this job. He couldn't shake the feeling that it was a trap.

He glanced around the parking lot noting the cars and couple of SUV's. A small stand of trees lined one driveway leading on to Main Street. A rusted ice machine and a soda vending machine stood across the parking lot beside a pool. Green scum floated on top of the water. If Dean hadn't been already feeling paranoid he might have missed the human shape leaning against the rod iron safety fence. Dean thought it looked like someone was hiding but he knew it could just be someone staring into the useless water. He checked his hip reassured to feel the weight of his gun. As he drew closer to the pool a woman stepped from the shadows holding her hands out.

With messy brown hair hanging below her shoulders and a smirk playing on her lips, Meg, the demon, held up her hands in mock surrender. Dressed in dark jeans, a form fitting maroon blouse and brown leather jacket, she laughed as Dean scowled.

"Stop. Don't shoot," she said in a bored drawl.

"What are you doing here? You're supposed to be looking after Cas."

"I am looking after Cas. It's like watching cardboard. But, hey, even demon angels of mercy get a day off."

"You said you'd stay with him."

"I'm going back, I'm going back. Don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm here to help. It's my new thing."

Dean shook his head. "Help with what?"

"Let's go find 'gigantor' and I'll tell you everything, huh? What do you say?"

Dean scowled as he led the way back to the motel room thinking it was strange to trust her. He wondered what happened over the last few years that, after being in two different demon fights in one day, he was willing to bring one back to Sam. He imagined his father was cursing him from the grave.

Dean shoved the key in the lock and went in with Meg following close behind him. He heard the shower running so he knocked on the bathroom door earning a startled noise from Sam.

"It's just me," he said as he cracked the door open. "We have company."

"What?"

"It's Meg. She's come by to visit."

"Meg? Is Cas…?"

"Cas is the same. Just, uh, wrap it up in there. You need clothes?"

"Uh, yeah," Sam said.

Dean pulled the door closed again noticing that Meg was leaning close around him, peeking into the bathroom. He gave her a warning glare.

"Okay, okay, sitting," she said. "But, you know, I've been inside that boy so…"

"Shut up," Dean said, not happy to remember the week that Meg possessed his brother.

She smiled as she settled on the bed closest to the door.

Dean dug some jeans, a gray t-shirt and boxers out of Sam's duffle. He opened the bathroom door just enough to toss them inside then returned his attention to Meg.

"So, uh, how's Cas doing?"

"Same as when you left. Seemed a little agitated at first and then he just settled into a coma or something. Nobody really thinks he's going to come out of it."

"They don't know he's an angel. He'll come back."

"Like that can-do attitude, John-Boy."

"You know what?" Dean stopped himself from berating her. It wouldn't do any good. "What are you doing here?"

"Heard you had a demon problem. Figured you could use some intel from little old me. Am I right?"

Dean glanced towards the bathroom when he heard the snick of the door. Sam emerged, red faced from heat with hair dripping but he had put on the clothes that Dean tossed him.

"Meg," Sam said in greeting to their guest.

"Sammy, looking all pink and damp. Isn't that just what a girl dreams of?"

"What do you want?" he said, sounding as annoyed as Dean felt.

"That's what I've been trying to find out," Dean said.

"I know why the demons are getting all handsy with you two," she said. "They're putting together some kind of blood drive but for souls. Lure in as many humans as they can and then reap the rewards in ten years."

"We know that. That's why we're here," Sam said.

"Ah, but here's the part you don't know, they want Sammy to be the face of their little endeavor."

Dean froze, cold creeping though his belly. "What?"

"'Apparently, Lucifer's vessel is pretty premium. They're planning to possess the boy king and then use him to trap the other humans. Put a giant, handsome face on the program, if you know what I mean."

"Why would I give away my soul?" Sam asked.

"Don't know. But, they don't need it anyway. They're just planning to jump inside and get all cozy. I get the appeal. You know, been there, done that."

"We can't get possessed," Dean pointed out.

"Oh, well, the tattoos are fancy and all. But, it's not that hard to get rid of one, is it? I even heard they already succeeded at some potty on the highway."

Sam shook his head. "No, but I got jumped there and here too."

"And it sure seemed like they were expecting us at Griffith," Dean said.

"Yeah, well, there's a good reason for that. When we were getting Castiel settled, a very ambitious hell-spawn slipped a nice GPS tracker on your car. They've been tracking you for days."

"What?" Dean said as he stalked out the door

"How do you know all this?" Sam said.

"I have my sources, still got a few aces left and all that."

Sam shook his head. "But, you don't. Crowley wants to kill you and none of the demons are going to go against him."

Meg smiled and cocked her head. "You're worried about me."

"No. I'm not. But, I am wondering where your intel is coming from."

She pouted while Sam deliberately gave her a bland expression in return.

"Fine. I have some black market connections. I had to support myself somehow while Crowley was searching for me."

"What were you…"

"You don't want to know, Sam. The point is, one of them reached out to me; said he had a debt to repay to the Winchesters and needed me to carry the information. Apparently, you helped him out a couple years ago. So, here I am."

Dean returned with a scowl and carrying a round tan colored device. He dropped it on the motel floor and stomped it under his boot.

"It was stuck on the undercarriage by the passenger side door," he said. "Damn demons. I knew we should have switched cars by now."

"Meg was just telling me that we helped out a friend of hers and they're the ones passing out all the information," Sam said.

"When did we ever help out a demon?" Dean said.

"Not a demon," Meg said. "You boys are such bigots. It was a witch. He has family down here who've been helping with this Plucky Pennywhistle thing. They heard there were plans for you two as well and they passed it on to him."

Sam moved the lamp back on the small, corner desk. Then he picked up an ashtray and set it on the nightstand. Dean watched the restless motions knowing that his brother was scared.

"All righty then. Watch your backs," Meg said. "I'm going back to produce to watch my divine vegetable."

Dean knew he should appreciate the fact that she came to deliver news but he was just glad that Meg was leaving.

"Wait a minute," Sam said and Dean frowned at him. "All those humans at Griffith…they have to be possessed or dead."

Meg shrugged, clearly unconcerned. Sam turned to Dean.

"If they're possessed, we have to exorcize the demons. We can save those people and it might make the project too costly to try again."

Dean shook his head. "It's a building. There are probably fifty or more people in there."

"I know. That's fifty demons with meat suits."

"How are you going to exorcize that many people?" Meg asked. "Even if you were drinking demon blood again, I don't see how…"

"I'm not," Sam said, venom in his tone. "The same way we did at the police station in Colorado."

"Before Lilith came in and killed everybody, you mean?" Dean said, getting worried as Sam laid out his plan.

"That's not what happened and you know it. We saved a lot of those townspeople before Lilith showed up."

"Yeah, well, we had a P.A. system, full access to the building, time to set things up. There's no way we can pull that off here."

"Okay, boys, I'm intrigued…not," Meg said. "Have fun storming the castle."

"Will you just wait?" Sam said, impatiently and Meg stopped with her hand hovering above the door handle. "I want you to take me to Griffith and turn me in. If I'm inside then I can set up the recording."

Meg dropped her hand, folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the door.

"Absolutely no frigging way, Sam," Dean said. "That is not a plan; that's suicide. Or worse."

"Dean…"

"No."

"Just hear me out. Please." Dean glared at him but Sam continued. "If Meg takes me in then I can escape from her and get access to the building. After that, I can just get the equipment set up."

"What equipment? How? The police station had a PA system, we don't know if this place does or how it works."

"They'll have a paging system through the phones. They all do."

"You don't know that," Dean said.

"Then we'll do some recognizance and find out. If it does and we find out where the main panel is then…"

"That's a lot of "ifs" to be betting on. And what about laying salt lines? How do you expect to do that?"

"You can do that. Do the outside so the demons get exorcized before they escape."

"Sam, it's a two story building."

Sam hesitated and Dean could see him mulling over that detail. Finally, he sighed before he said, "Dean, they've attacked us three times now and according to Meg, they want me. Don't you think it's worth it to get ahead of this? Isn't this our job?"

"No, I don't and…no."

Even as Dean spoke he knew that Sam had a point and they obviously needed to take an aggressive action. He also knew he didn't like it. The plan was reckless and dangerous and Sam wanted to trust Meg which made it even more so.

"All right, fine," Dean said. "Before light tomorrow, we'll see if we can break in."

"I have a better idea," Sam said. "Send Meg in."

"Whoa, wait a minute," Meg said.

"All you have to do is tell them you can get me. You don't have to bring up the arcade. Just that you heard they wanted me and you want to make points by delivering me. And while you're there, you can get a tour. Check out the electric system."

"No, uh, uh, that's not happening," Meg said.

"She's right," Dean said. "There're a million things wrong with that plan. We're not doing this based on her intel plus they'll figure her out in two seconds. We'll break in, figure it out and get out. Then we'll involve her. That's as much trust as I'm willing to give."

"Wow, Dean, you sure know how to make a girl swoon," Meg said and Dean rewarded her with a glare.

"Fine," Sam said, sounding reluctant.

Meg nodded. She started to leave then stopped and turned back around.

"What am I supposed to do now?" She said.

"I'm sure there's a rock around here that you can crawl under," Dean said.

"Dean," Sam said. He turned to Meg. "I'll get you a room for the night."

"That bed looks cozy. You sure you don't want to share?" She said.

Sam rolled his eyes in annoyance but all Dean could think about was Ruby and demon blood. Anger shot through him at the thought of another demon invading Sam's life.

Sam pushed his way around her as he left the room while Dean imagined plunging a knife through her.

Dean didn't want to leave Meg alone with all their stuff. He opened his phone and did a quick internet search for pizza. Finding what he wanted, he dialed just as Sam returned. He ordered a large three meat pizza and a six pack, gave them the motel name and room number and hung up.

Sam handed Meg the key to a room then waited for her to leave. She didn't speak, just took the key and sauntered out the door.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are welcome and appreciated.

Part 3

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Early the next morning, Dean shook Sam's leg and told him to wake up. The room hung dark and chilly as he made his way into the bathroom. After the lengthy shower he took the night before, Dean just rinsed off and brushed his teeth before turning it over to Sam. His giant brother lumbered past him grunting something unintelligible.

Ten minutes later his brother emerged squinting and rubbing his forehead. Flushed pink, his face looked like he had just trekked out of the desert, all dry skin tinged with red. His eyes were sunken and glassy and his lips were pale.

"You're sick," Dean said, anger and accusation filling his tone.

"I know," Sam said. "It's just a fever, I'm all right."

"It's not just a fever. There's no such thing as just a fever. You have an infection."

"I do not," Sam said with a scowl. "I'm just tired."

"You just woke up."

"Four hours, Dean, we had four hours of sleep. I know you're a robot but some of us need a little more rest than that."

"You're staying here. I'll go investigate the building and we'll figure out what to do after that."

"I'm not staying here. I can still work."

"Sammy, you're not just tired. The whole Lucifer in your head thing did some damage. If Cas hadn't shown up, you'd be dead now. Accept that you need time to recover and just…let me do the heavy lifting for now."

"Look, Dean, I appreciate it but…"

"Sam, go back to bed. It won't take that long to figure this out."

"What if you get into trouble?"

"Come on, it's me. When do I run into trouble on a simple break-in?" Sam cocked his head and widened his eyes. "Point taken. If I get caught then you'll come and get me, just like always."

"If you're alive."

"Jeez, way to be positive. I'll be fine. Take some aspirin, go back to sleep. I'll be back with breakfast."

Dean threw on his tee shirt, a gray hoodie and then put his army jacket over the top. He watched as Sam surrendered by sinking back on to his bed. He didn't lie down but his shoulders were hunched and his face was sheer misery.

Dean dug around in his bag until he found the aspirin. He tossed the bottle to Sam who caught it easily but didn't move to open it. Dean picked up a half empty bottle of water from the bedside table and handed it to him.

"Take drugs, drink some water, go to sleep. Keep your phone on."

Sam followed directions like a child. Then he settled on the bed with a sigh as Dean opened the motel room door. Dean hoped the fever and exhaustion would outweigh Sam's worry. He also hoped the extra rest would make him better.

After Sam went to sleep the night before, Dean had driven to the next town, left their compromised vehicle in a parking lot then stole a 1994 Toyota. The morning light hadn't made the car any prettier or the air any warmer. He started the engine then got back out, walked over to Meg's room and knocked. The demon answered the door with a scowl. She wore the same clothes as the night before but had shed the jacket.

"Miss me?" she said.

"I'm going over to Griffith. Keep an eye on Sam."

"When did I become a babysitter?"

"Look, he's sick and because of that tracker, they probably know where we are. I have to go so just watch the door…please."

She recoiled with a grin spreading over her face. "Wow, a "please" and from Dean Winchester, no less. You must be really worried. All right. I'll keep the rugrat safe."

"You do know I'll kill you if you let anything happen to him, right?"

Her smile faded as she drawled, "And the real Dean is back."

Dean left her standing in the doorway.

"Nice granny car," she said. He ignored her.

He drove to Griffith then parked in a grocery store lot a street away. He planned to have the building scoped and be gone long before customers showed up for any shopping. Zipping his jacket against the cold he checked to make sure his gun rested securely on his hip while his holy water and salt weighed down his jacket pocket. He carried a lock pick kit and a knife too.

He jogged the short distance to the alley behind the architectural firm and looked for alarm wires and cameras. The back door was a single entry with a glass panel from top to bottom.

Dean walked a few feet in either direction looking for the main electrical panel. He didn't find it but he did discover the heavily encased wires leading around to the side of the building. Nestled on the wall with only a three feet gap between Griffith and the real estate office beside it, Dean found the breaker box and next to it was the phone system wiring. He scooted his way into the small space by side stepping then took his phone out to photograph the information from the stickers and emblems. He figured he could "google" back at the motel to determine if the model had an internal paging system. Contorting in order to get a decent angle, he managed to take a few shots.

He shimmied his way back out from between the buildings cursing when he found the demon receptionist, Emily, waiting for him. She grabbed his lapels and fluidly tossed him into the nearest trash pile. The free sailing left Dean's stomach rolling but the sudden stop knocked his breath away. He struggled to stand as he reached for the demon knife. Emily grabbed his feet and dragged him into the middle of the alley. She drove her pointed high heel into his side. He grunted as dull pain blossomed along his hip while he tried to crawl away from her. She grabbed his leg again, her grip digging into his leg as she pulled him back. Dean flipped over on to his back, forcing himself into a curl as he thrust out with the knife. Emily gasped and dropped him when the knife connected into her belly. Electricity sounded under her scream as her eyes flashed black then red before she collapsed.

"Damn it," Dean murmured as he twisted on to his knees and pushed himself up.

He regretted the death of the host but knew he couldn't have done anything differently. He dismissed the real Emily from his mind as he started back to the car. His leg ached from being yanked on and his back hurt from the last couple of battles. He limped across the parking lot and hoped he got enough information from the outside panel to make a difference.

Driving back to the motel he remembered he had promised to get breakfast so he drove through a Mexican place and picked up three potato, egg, and bacon burritos. He ordered extra hot sauce and side of salsa too.

The food smelled wonderful and Dean's stomach growled. He drove the rest of the way anticipating a decent meal and few hours of research before they decided whether to go with Sam's plan. His brother could eat and sleep, in that order, until it was time to do something.

He pulled into the parking lot to find Meg standing in the doorway of her room. She was leaning against the door jamb with her arms folded.

"You been standing there the whole time?" Dean asked as he slid out of the car.

"Just making well-baby checks."

"Any problems?"

"Nope. As far as I know he's tucked in safe and sound."

"I brought food if you're hungry."

Meg rolled her eyes. "Demon, Dean."

"Yeah, well, suit yourself."

The squeak of a door heralded Sam sticking his head out.

"You two going to stand out here waking up the neighbors or are you coming in?" Sam said.

Dean smiled to see him sounding and looking better. Meg fell into step behind Dean and they joined Sam indoors.

Dean set the breakfast bag on the small table near the door. He reached in, retrieved a burrito and tossed it to Sam who caught it one handed. The aroma of coffee lured Dean into the kitchen where he poured himself a cup before grabbing his own meal and settling on his bed.

"Last chance," he said to Meg.

She took the third burrito and settled into the desk chair.

Dean stood back up to grab the hot sauce. He took a bite to break the tortilla up then poured the sauce on. He preceded each bite by adding more. The food was as good as it smelled.

Sam wolfed down his meal as if he hadn't eaten in a while and Dean took that as a good sign.

Meg nibbled at hers looking like a nervous girl on a first date, embarrassed to eat too much or too fast.

"So what did you find out?" Sam asked Dean.

"I got all the information from the electrical and phone boxes. We should be able to figure it out from there."

"Any problems?"

"Tangled with the perky receptionist again. She's toast."

"You all right?" Sam asked.

"I'm here, aren't I?"

Sam shrugged in agreement. "You're going to have to hide out when Meg brings me in. If you're just idly hanging around they're going to know something's up."

"I can be close and stay out of sight."

Sam tossed the wrapper from his burrito into the trash can and walked over to the table. He settled in the chair and opened the laptop. Dean followed and handed him his phone with all the photos of the phone and electrical boxes.

An hour later they determined that Sam's plan was a bust. The phone system was old. While it might have had a paging system once, the programming was optional, and undependable even when installed.

"Okay, what's Plan B?" Dean asked.

"Burn the place down," Meg said.

Dean and Sam turned to face her.

"What would that solve?" Sam asked.

"Take a page from your daddy. Bless the water for the fire sprinklers. When they go off, the demons will bail out of the meat suits plus you get the added bonus of destroying the files."

Dean looked at Sam. Sam looked back and shrugged.

"There has to be something wrong with that idea," Dean said.

"Why? Because I thought of it?" Meg asked.

"Yes," Dean answered honestly.

She threw up her hands, "I'm outty. Best of luck to the both of you."

"Wait, Meg," Sam said. "We just need a minute to think it through, all right? Besides, I'd still need you to escort me in."

"We can find another way to plant the charges," Dean said.

"One of us has to be inside to help the civilians. Once the demons smoke out the people are going to be confused. If I'm already in I can get them to exits."

Dean nodded. "Okay, I'll take care of blessing the water and laying salt lines along the doors. We can set off the explosion in the cellar. The smoke will rise to set off the sprinklers but the fire will take some time to spread. The sprinklers will probably kill it before it goes anywhere."

"Why are you laying salt lines if you want the demons to go away?" Meg asked.

"So they'll use the windows. It'll keep them away from the doors, which is where Sam will be directing the humans."

"And what about little old me?"

"Get out of there as soon as you can. I'll give you a little bit of time before setting off the charge but I don't want Sam in their custody any longer than he has to be."

They spent the next several minutes discussing the plan and the weaknesses in it. Dean deliberately tossed out every scenario he could think of until Sam threw up his hands and excused himself to the bathroom. Dean figured he must have been pushing too hard to kill the idea if Sam just gave up. Normally, Sam would argue the paint off a post if he thought he was right.

"I'm going to call the hospital and check on everyone's favorite angel," Meg said before going outside.

Dean watched her leave then glanced at the closed bathroom door. He had annoyed them both with his nitpicking but he figured it was worth it. Making sure the plan was solid, maybe over-solid, was important and irritating Meg was a bonus.

He scooped up the leftover burrito wrappers and tossed them in the trash. Then he picked up his duffle and started filling it. He didn't want to stay in one place for too long. He had spotted a shabby looking place a few miles out of town that would serve their purposes and he'd feel safer knowing they had a new place after emptying Griffith out.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Several hours later, Dean wished he'd listened to his instincts. Sam had emerged from the bathroom looking like death and Dean suspected he'd been vomiting. Sam insisted he was fine and refused to admit that the fever was back. Dean knew it; Sam knew it and they hadn't canceled anything. Saving civilians was their job. Their father never allowed sickness or injury to stop them and neither did they.

Dean had managed to find the water line feeding the fire sprinklers of the building and blessed it with a cross, and words he memorized as a child. He had disguised himself as an exterminator to gain entry into the building and found himself setting the charges in the basement with no interference. He set the timer for fifteen minutes. His part had played out so well he actually started thinking that he had been needlessly negative about the whole thing.

He used the exit in the alley then laid down a salt line. He ran a metal pipe through the rounded handles of the door in order to keep it closed. A few minutes later, Meg sent him a text that said, "show time". Since the charges were going to blow regardless he only acknowledged the message and shoved his phone back in his pocket. When his watch told him that ignition was ninety seconds away, Dean ran to the front of the building. His feet pounded against the asphalt as he rounded the corner. A woman raised wide eyes at him through the clear glass as he rammed a second metal post through the handles. He was still pouring the salt line when he heard the explosion feeling the tremor under his boots.

Dean watched for only a moment as demons started darting around the lobby and into the elevator and back offices searching for the source of the noise. Then he spotted the smoke seeping through the vents. A few moments later the sputtering sound of water started. He made his way to the alley doors again to wait for dazed humans to appear. Meg was in charge of opening the front door, Dean was in charge of the back.

Typically when a demon vacates a human host, the human loses consciousness and when he or she wakes up there's a lot of confusion. Assuming the human survives, of course, which is often not the case. Sam's job was to get people moving out of the burning building then meet Dean. Together they would find the main records storage, the network server, and destroy it. Most companies keep servers in a fire-protected environment so they wanted to make sure it was toast, literally.

Dean stood outside the back door after the explosion. He watched demons smoke out of open windows and humans stumble out the exit. He directed them into the closest parking lot and told them to wait for the authorities. And after the last few trickled out, dazed and scared, Dean's anxiety ratcheted up like it always did when he couldn't figure out the location of his brother. He promised himself he was going to get one of those dog GPS things and insert one in Sam.

His phone rang. Seeing Sam's name he demanded, "Where are you?"

"Out front," Meg answered. "Watching the pretty fireman trying to decide if another bomb is going to go off. I think they might call Homeland Security."

"Where's Sam?"

"He's not with you?"

"Why do you have his phone?" Dean said.

"Couldn't really hand him over with his phone in his pocket, could I?"

Dean rubbed his forehead. "He didn't meet me."

"I might know why," she said. When she didn't continue, Dean decided he would find her and gank her before the end of the day.

"Meg."

"Okay, okay, I just overhead a very concerned Daddy tell someone that he thinks his six year old is inside the building."

Dean pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it for a moment. He cursed.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are welcome and appreciated.

This section is a little short.

Sorry for the slightly late post. I couldn't get to it this morning.

Sincere thanks to those who are following, making this a favorite and reviewing.

Part 4

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The demons holding the office building and its workers hostage lost all control when the sprinklers engaged. Holy water burned the skin of their hosts and sent them into a panic. Most of them smoked out immediately. A few tried to run, probably looking for someplace to hide but most gave up and abandoned their meat suits with curses and growling.

The two demons guarding Sam were apparently more determined because the chaos around them only made them angry. Even as their flesh sizzled they seized Sam viciously, wrapping cruel hands around his arms as they hustled him out of the hall and into an office. One of the demons shot out the sprinkler heads in a fit of annoyance but only managed to release a torrent of holy water over himself. He screamed out as the body burned and collapsed into drenched carpeting. The demon smoked out, forcing itself through the cracks of the closest window.

The second demon cursed at the cowardice of his companion even as his feet started sizzling from the holy water now flooding the room. Another explosion rocked the building with a concussive blast. Sam tumbled towards an oak desk. A metal filing cabinet slammed into the remaining guard.

Sam checked the guard finding its neck broken then jumped back when the demon smoked out of the dead host and spiraled into an air vent.

Sam stumbled into the hallway wiping water off his face. The fever he'd been fighting all day left him trembling and his legs wanted to drop him on to the ground but he fought to keep balance and ignore the headache pulsing behind his eyes. Not telling Dean that he'd failed to keep the burrito down and that he was suffering from a full-blown flu had probably been a mistake.

He needed to push through the illness long enough to get to the exit on the north side of the building. He thought he knew where the "server" room was located but Dean would pitch hell if Sam didn't meet him. Besides, between the shakes and fever, he needed his brother's help to finish the job.

Sam moved through the hall ducking into an office when he heard the clatter of running feet. He didn't want to run into more demons. When he stuck his head out, he found four humans arguing. He stepped out.

"Hey, hey," he said, getting their attention. "Head to the exits. The building's on fire."

"Do you know why I'm here?" A middle aged man in a FedEx uniform asked.

"No, but you need to leave. The exit is that way." Sam pointed down the hall. "There are signs. Follow them."

"This is my day off," a young woman said as she patted down her damp skirt. "I don't know how I got here."

"The building is on fire." Sam said more forcefully. "Is there anything more urgent than that right now?"

The small group glanced around at each other then one of them trotted off so the others followed. Their feet squelched in the flooded carpet.

Sam leaned with both hands on the wall beside the door jamb and rested his forehead against the cool plaster. He could hear more chattering cries as civilians ran for any exit. The main thing, the important thing was that they were getting out.

When the sounds died down, Sam pushed himself away from the wall. He shivered as he steadied then peered down the hall. His eyes widened at the sight of a child sitting on the floor with her hands wrapped over her head as if that would keep her dry.

She looked young, maybe four or five years old. Her blond hair hung in waves around her shoulders. She was dressed in pink jeans with a long-sleeved pink and white striped shirt.

She was sniffling and wiping her nose on her knee.

"Um, who are you?" Sam spoke softly trying not to startle her. She jumped anyway and scrambled to the other side of the hall.

"I want my mom," she said, tears streaking down her cheeks.

"I'll bet you do. Where is she?"

"At home."

"She left you here?" Sam said, thinking that couldn't be right.

The girl shook her head and a new wave of tears filled her eyes.

"I'm going to help you, okay?"

The girl plastered her tiny body against the wall. "No."

"No?" Sam asked.

"Stranger," the girl said.

Sam let out a breath.

"Yes," he said. "I am a stranger and I'm sorry because we don't have time for me to become your friend. I need you to trust me and let me help you."

The girl shook her head looking more scared than before.

"I'm just going to take you downstairs and see if we can find your mom," Sam said.

"Take me?" The girl's eyes were so wide that Sam wondered how they stayed anchored in her tiny face.

He thought for a moment and realized what he'd said. He held up his hands. "Not take you, take you. Just walk with you downstairs because you have to get out of this building."

"I don't want to."

Sam blinked, wiping water out of his eyes. He could pick her up and haul her down two flights of stairs. He might even be able to cover her mouth to keep her quiet. But, he didn't want to traumatize her.

He crouched down to her level. "Look," he said. "My name is Sam. I'm going to help you find your mom. That's all I'm going to do. What's your name?"

"Hailey," she answered in a small voice.

"Okay, good. Now, we're friends. Take my hand."

Sam stood up and reached for her. She sidled a few feet along the wall and shook her head.

"You're a stranger. Sometimes strangers look just like regular people. Sometimes they're nice."

Frustrated and worried, Sam said, "Look, kid, we don't have time for this. We have to go."

She hiccupped and covered her face with both hands. Her shoulders started to shake and Sam leaned against the wall. He really wanted to curl up in a ball and sleep. Some Tylenol, some juice, a soft bed and a warm blanket and he'd everything he could want. Instead he was feeling like an ass for scaring a child and shivering from a fever.

"Okay," he said in a softer voice. "I'm sorry, Hailey. I don't feel well and it's making me cranky."

The girl peeked through her fingers. "You're sick?"

"Yes."

"Will your mom take care of you?"

Sam shook his head. "No, but my brother will. He's waiting for me downstairs. He always takes care of me when I need him."

"My brother takes my dolls and hides them." Her tone told Sam that it was the ultimate crime.

"That's not very nice," he said.

She shook her head agreeing with his assessment.

"You want your brother?" She asked.

"Just as much as you want your mom, Hailey."

"Okay, then I guess we have to go."

"Yeah, good, okay."

The child scrambled up to her feet and pulled her shirt down, primping her wet clothes like it mattered. She pushed her hair behind her ears.

"The stairs are that way." Sam pointed down the hall. He didn't put his hand out to her again for fear of scaring her.

Hailey nodded. She scrunched her eyes and pursed her lips and adopted a determined gaze. Sam had the feeling that she had taken on the mission of getting him to Dean.

"What was that boom thing?" She asked as she walked a few steps ahead of Sam.

"There was an explosion in the basement."

The girl stopped and turned around. "A bomb?"

"Sort of. But, it's not going to happen again."

The little girl looked around fearfully probably expecting the building to collapse around her. "How'd it happen?"

Sam scrunched his eyes up for a moment trying to think of an answer. Finally, he decided she didn't need one. "That's a little complicated so how about if we get out of here and then…"

Sam didn't have a chance to finish his sentence. Hailey had been standing at the end of the hall and an arm darted out and grabbed her. She squealed in surprise and Quincy Walter walked into view holding the squirming child.

"I was hoping you were still here," Quincy said. A couple of inches shorter than Sam with a slight build, he tossed Hailey over his shoulder and kept a hand wrapped around her legs.

"Put her down," Sam said.

Sam had had met Quincy earlier in the day when Meg delivered Sam as a prisoner.

Hailey squeaked in fear. Quincy smiled and cocked his head.

"Shouldn't you be burning right now?" Sam asked, referring to the holy water sprinklers raining down.

"I would. If I were a demon, which I'm not."

Sam lurched forward just as Quincy yanked Hailey off his shoulder and wrapped his hands around her head. The child squealed and squirmed but she was no match for a full grown man.

"I'll break her neck," Quincy warned stopping Sam from moving forward.

Hailey's face was turning red and her flailing was growing weaker.

"Let her go. She's no threat to you."

"But, she is good protection. Back up into the room on the right. Your right, not mine." Sam didn't move, anger and worry keeping him rooted in place.

"Don't make me hurt her."

Tears streamed down Hailey's face. She had wrapped her hands around Quincy's arm and was mostly hanging there while she struggled around her restricted air.

Sam held his hands out from his body. He started backing up slowly then when he reached the closest recess in the wall he felt around for the door handle. Just as he touched it, the sprinklers gurgled a last effort and stopped. Sam pushed the door open and backed his way inside but not all the way. He kept his eyes on Hailey and Quincy.

Quincy set the child on the floor. He pulled a gun from his pocket with one hand then prodded her forward with the other until they reached the threshold. He shoved her into the room and Sam caught her when she stumbled into him. Quincy waved the gun.

"Step back and close the door," he said.

Sam followed orders, not willing to risk a fight that would result in gunfire. He flipped the door shut with one hand, satisfied when it slammed in Quincy's face. His satisfaction lasted only a moment when he heard the lock turn.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Dean ran down the steps to the basement. After Meg's call he knew why Sam had failed to meet him. His brother wouldn't leave a civilian behind and certainly not a child. Armed with his Colt, the domestic version, not the monster killing one, he took the stairs two at a time. The linoleum covering them made the surface slick so he used the wooden rail on either side to keep from slipping off. It would just be his luck to break a limb due to a situation that he put in place.

He wished someone would kill the sprinklers though. The constant patter of water made keeping his eyes clear difficult, plus it skewed the sounds in the building.

As he landed on the cement floor leading to the basement, he peered through the square of glass set in a plain metal door. Just as before when he'd come down to set the charges, he didn't see anyone so he pressed against the bar latching the door closed and pushed. Moving more slowly he stepped into the demolished room. He looked in both directions, hoping to find Sam waiting for him. If his brother was trapped with a civilian, it made sense that he'd go to the one place that no one else would be heading to. He squinted as he saw a body lying on the ground. He knew it wasn't Sam and couldn't figure out why anyone else would be down there. Carefully approaching the figure, keeping his eyes and attention darting around, he found a man curled on his side with his arms wrapped around his head. Just as Dean crouched beside him the sprinklers sputtered off.

"Hey, buddy, what are you doing down here?" Dean asked as he put the Colt into his pocket.

The man took his arms down and wiped water off his face. He blinked a few times as if he were trying to get things into focus. Dark blond hair hung in clumps around his pock-marked face.

"You should get out of the building," Dean said.

"I was on fire," the man said. "I saw smoke and my skin hurt."

"Yeah, well, you're not now."

"I was trapped in an office and I could hear screaming."

"It was all scary but you still have to go. How'd you end up in the basement?"

The man stood up slowly, using Dean for leverage. He was a few inches shorter than Dean and narrow around the shoulders.

"Everyone was on fire. I ran."

Dean nodded, deliberately not rolling his eyes at the panicked response. If the building had really burned, this man would have trapped himself and gone down with it.

"You're okay now but it's not safe here so just go on down the hall, that way, and take the stairs up. Follow the exit signs."

"Shouldn't I be dead?"

The man looked to be about Sam's age but he had a paunch around his belly. He patted his jacket pockets as he looked up at Dean.

"My glasses."

"Can be replaced. Feel your way out."

The man nodded as he lumbered his way clumsily towards the exit.

Dean took a moment to clean the excess sprinkler water off his own face and shake out his hair. Then he started checking through the rubble. There hadn't been much in the basement other than the water heater and some electrical boxes so he could see around the room just by walking through it. The explosion left mangled metal and loose wires but not much else.

"Come on, Sam, where are you?" Dean muttered to himself as he jogged back up the stairs.

Just as he stepped on to the main floor, he came face to face with a civilian. Standing about the same height as Dean but with less muscle he cocked his head. His thin lips tensed as he said,

"Deviant."

Dean felt the hair on his neck and arms tingle against his skin. He reached for the Colt just as the man swung a fist. Dean blocked with his forearm yelling out in surprise and pain when the sound of cracking bone burst sickeningly. The pain flashed bright all the way from his fingertips to his shoulder and he felt himself slip to one knee as he grabbed his arm. The stranger kicked out landing a devastating blow into his broken limb and Dean collapsed on to his side. He tried to scoot backward as the stranger followed mercilessly, kicking him again. Dean tumbled over, landing on his damaged arm even as he tried to curl and protect it. The pain overwhelmed him and Dean felt darkness creeping in. He fought it, knowing he needed to find Sam, and knowing whatever this was that attacked him would probably kill him, but his vision slipped away even as he heard yelling explode around him.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are welcome and appreciated.

Part 5

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Sam waited a few moments after Quincy locked them in to make sure he wasn't standing outside the door. Hailey stood a few feet away from him with silent tears on her cheeks. Huge eyes stared at him from her tiny face while she fought to catch her breath. Sam knelt down in front of her then wished he didn't when dizziness swept over him. After taking a couple of breaths, the vertigo passed and he tried to paste a confident expression on his face.

"Are you okay?" he asked the girl.

"I want my mom," she said in a quavering voice made hoarse from Quincy's abuse.

"I'm going to get you to your mom, Hailey. I promise."

"My throat hurts."

"Let me take a look, okay?"

She shrank away from him, putting her hands up as if warding him off.

Sam sighed. His fever raged making his eyes feel gritty and his body ache.

In exaggerated calm he said, "I just want to make sure that your throat isn't swollen. Do you know what that means?"

Hailey nodded then winced when she moved her neck.

"I promise to be careful," Sam said.

She lifted her chin slightly and he took that as permission. With gentle fingers he touched her neck, searching for any damage. He was thankful when it seemed fine.

"Can I look inside your mouth?" he asked.

She tilted her head further back and stuck out her tongue. Sam stifled a laugh as he peered into her throat. He thought he could see some redness but nothing to be concerned about.

"Okay, thanks, Hailey, you look good. It might hurt a little bit but that shouldn't last too long. Maybe your mom can get you some ice cream later."

"Thank you," she said.

"What do you say we get out of here? Are you ready?"

"Yes," she answered in a small voice and slipped her hand into Sam's.

The flimsy door gave way with one kick and the wet carpet muffled the noise. Hailey gave him a worried frown but there was excitement in her eyes. Sam squeezed her hand as he led her down the hall towards the stairway.

"Dean, that's my brother, will be looking for me. He's probably searching right now."

"Daddy's been mad." She said quietly.

Sam watched for Quincy as they walked. He worried that the other man might grab Hailey again. He wished he felt stronger. The fever dragged on him and he didn't relish the idea of a physical fight.

"You came here with your Dad?" He asked.

"Uh-huh," she said.

"Where did he go?"

"He got mad and I got scared."

"So you ran away from him?"

"I want my mom."

Sam glanced down at her, seeing the new tears swimming in her eyes. She cries a lot, he thought. His father would never have put up with all that emotion. He supposed a six year old girl was different than two boys being trained as hunters.

"Your dad was probably sick," he said. "A lot of people were sick around here. But, I'll bet he's better now and he's looking for you. He won't be mad anymore."

Sam hoped that was true. Her father could easily be dead. Or he could be a jerk on a good day.

They reached the end of the hall leading to the stairwell. Quincy still hadn't made an appearance and Sam wondered if the other man had locked them in and left. He doubted it. While no one had revealed much during his incarceration by the demons, Sam knew they needed him for something and it wasn't just to put a friendly face on buying souls.

"Sam," Hailey yelled as she pulled on his hand. He yanked her around his body so she was behind him and held tight.

Quincy stood in a doorway. He grinned as he stepped forward.

"Where'd you come from?" Sam said. Even sick, he was certain the other man couldn't have crept up on them.

"Sam, my name is Daniel. I am an angel created by God and I am fallen in His eyes. One of 200 who are watchers of my Father's creation. I've returned to fix what you've broken."

His heart thudding, Sam said, "An angel? Working with demons."

Anger flashed in the angel's eyes. "Who are you to judge me? Lucifer's vessel. Poisoned by demon blood. Defiler of God's plan. You who fornicate with a demon. And you judge me?"

Sam didn't have a response for all that.

"You must accept your destiny," Daniel said, his voice calmer. "You attempted to escape but it's not possible. God's plan is not a choice, its obedience."

"You're too late. Lucifer is in the cage with Michael."

"No," Daniel said. "There is a way to return my brothers to the battleground."

Sam shook his head. Hailey had pressed herself to the back of his legs and wrapped both her hands around his.

"There's no way to get them out of the cage," Sam said.

"Of course there is. As Lucifer's vessel, he will be drawn to your presence. With the aid of the Horseman's rings, we simply open the chasm and dangle you for them to reach."

"You don't have the rings."

"Of course I do. They glowed brightly in the fire that took your friend's house."

Sam nodded. It made sense that whatever binding spell Bobby put on them would have been destroyed in the fire set by the Leviathan.

"Why would anyone want Lucifer free?" Sam asked.

"It is not only Lucifer I seek. It's both my brothers. They will emerge, the great battle will occur and God's plan will be fulfilled. The Watchers know. The Watchers have always known."

"You did all this? Let all these people get taken by demons just to bring me here?"

"No, of course not. We merely took advantage of an opportunity. Planted the seed with your friend, the hunter, planted another with the witch who cavorts with that demon you favor, and then we came here and waited. "Grab the Light" is a project for these abhorrent demons of the crossroad but it has nothing to do with my plans for you."

"What was the bathroom attack about then?"

"Demons are unpredictable."

"I'm not helping you," Sam said but fear shivered through him at the idea of being in the pit, of seeing Lucifer and Michael again.

"You leapt into the cage willingly to save humanity. Will you accept your destiny to save one child?"

Sam squeezed Hailey's hand, unconsciously pulling her closer to him.

"She has nothing to do with this."

"No, nothing. But, she'll be useful as you weigh her innocence against your desire to maintain this world."

"It's one life against billions," Sam pointed out. "There's no choice there."

"It's one life that you literally hold in your hand. It's one innocent who looks to you for protection. I believe the choice is obvious."

"Sam," Hailey said. "He's bad. He's a stranger."

"It's going to be all right," Sam said. "Stay behind me."

Daniel, the fallen angel, snapped his fingers. The air twirled sickeningly around and Sam found himself on his knees, his gorge rose in a flash and he spit bile on the floor. The inside of his head pounded against his skull and into the back of his eyes. He moaned as he fell over, slapping his hands over his forehead and hoping to keep his brain from leaking out.

"Sam, Sam, please, I'm scared, please, Sam." The tiny, sobbing voice felt like needles jabbing into his eye sockets. But, he knew it was important. He knew he couldn't wallow.

Taking deep agonizing breaths, he slowly gained control. Putting the pain into a manageable place, he inched into awareness. With trembling hands he massaged his forehead in light circles until he could open his eyes without flashes of light exploding against his retinas.

A blob of something began taking shape as his vision cleared. As he realized what it was anxiety threatened to snap his head open. Once more he practiced breathing, forcing calm over the sickness.

Hailey patted his shoulder, pulling on his shirt at the same time. She hadn't stopped begging him to wake up.

"Okay," he said softly. "Quiet down. I'm awake."

He grunted when she threw herself across his chest. He had to squeeze his fingernails into his palms and steady his breathing again to stay conscious. The simple jarring of his torso had sent spasms rocketing through his skull. Not wanting to scare her further, he patted her back with his tightened fist.

"It's okay," he whispered.

"I don't like it here," she said.

"Where are we?"

"It's dark and it's stinky."

"Yeah, okay. I'm going to try to sit up."

Sam felt carpet beneath him. He recognized the rough texture and smell of glue. Having spent most of his life in motel rooms he knew they were in one, even if hadn't quite reached the goal of clear sight. Apparently getting angel zapped when suffering from the flu was a bad idea.

He reached out for the closest bed knowing instinctively where to find it and brushed the cheap, nylon bed cover. Pushing with his knees he managed to get steady enough to put a flat hand on the mattress. He lifted slowly, keeping his eyes closed to cut down on the vertigo. Hailey's hitching breath combined with his own panting as he painfully brought his feet under him. With an effort worthy of Notre Dame's Rudy Ruettiger, Sam plunked himself on to the bed. Rudy won cheers and accolades for essentially having "heart" and "desire", Sam won nausea and the background sniffling of a six year old for getting a second chance to bring on the Apocalypse.

"You okay?" Hailey whispered.

Sam chanced opening his eyes to glance at her. Red faced and pale, she was trembled as she twisted her hands in her shirt.

"I will be," he said.

"Can we go home?"

Sam swallowed. "I don't think so. Not yet. We're going to have to be really brave for a while first. Can you do that?"

She shrugged. "Mommy says I feel better after I throw up."

"Do you?"

She nodded. "Uh, huh. Do you feel better?"

"Not really," Sam admitted. "But, I can't sit around being sick right now."

He swallowed as he planted his feet. He straightened his legs as he stood, letting the dizziness sweep over him, hoping it would pass. He wavered but didn't lose his balance. After a few moments his equilibrium evened and he started focusing on the room.

His clothes were damp and cold. He glanced at Hailey to find that she was in the same condition. He wished he had his duffle with a change of clothes for both of them.

As Sam had guessed, they were in a motel room. Two full sized beds, a bathroom, a single door and a single window filled the space. A small desk sat in one corner. It looked like every motel room he remembered and smelled worse. He ignored the rolling nausea in his belly as he walked slowly towards the door. He assumed it would be locked but he had to pull on it to try. The handle turned like normal but the door stayed stubbornly secure in its frame. Since there was no give, no rattling of the wood, no air moving in the gap between the door and the jamb, he guessed that a spell must have been placed. A regular door, especially in a cheap motel, would shake in its hinges. This one stayed firmly in place as if it were cement rather than plywood.

Sam tossed out a couple of unbinding spells in hopes of getting lucky but the words produced no results. The same held true for the window. Since he didn't have a sledgehammer handy, going through the wall was out.

Dizzy and swallowing against vomit again, Sam sat down on the nearest bed. Hailey had already scrambled on to the other one. She lay on her stomach with her hands tucked under her chin and her legs crossed at the ankles.

"You should try to sleep," Sam told her. "I don't know how long we're going to be in here."

"I'm too old for naps."

"You are? Huh." Sam thought six year olds still took naps but he didn't really know. He'd never been around young children much and he'd never been responsible for one.

"Course. I'm in Kindergarten."

"No naps?"

She shook her head.

"Well, if you do feel tired, you can sleep."

"Will you still be here?"

Sam nodded. "Yes."

"Promise?"

"I won't leave you," he assured her but he didn't feel as confident as he wanted to sound. If Daniel decided to zap him someplace else then he wouldn't be able to stop him.

Hailey pushed off the bed. She mostly ran to the bathroom. If she was in school then she must use a toilet by herself, Sam thought.

With her absent for a moment, Sam gave in to his symptoms. He rested his head in his hands and breathed through the rolling in his stomach. His head continued pounding behind his eyes while his body trembled with weakness. The smell of bile made everything worse.

When Hailey opened the bathroom door with her pink jeans unbuttoned and her shirt twisted, Sam sighed.

"I can't get it," she stated.

"Come here."

She scurried over then stood in front of him with her hands hanging loose by her sides. Sam buttoned the pants and turned her shirt around so she was back to normal then patted her on the head.

She ran the couple of steps to the next bed and jumped on it with a laugh. Then she slid off and jumped on again.

"It's slidey," she said.

She played her game repeatedly while Sam went to the bathroom to get a washcloth. He wetted it then returned and cleaned up the small mess on the carpet. Hailey had begun jumping on the bed. Sam didn't stop her. He and Dean had spent hours jumping on motel beds out of boredom, out of frustration; while they were rough-housing and while they were playing. If Hailey found some relief by leaping around then Sam was glad.

Several minutes later she landed on her back giggling, and then rolled on to her stomach. She scrunched the blankets down, shoving her legs underneath as she rubbed her cheek against the pillow.

"Can I watch TV?" she asked.

Sam looked at the small set in front of the window. He eased on to his feet slowly, vertigo still messing with his balance. The remote sat on top so he clicked it. The naked breasts of a woman jiggled in close up. Sam gasped and pressed the channel button. Another pornographic movie popped up.

"Shit," he cursed, pressing the channel selector again. "Close your eyes."

The next channel was a cartoon and sighed with relief until two naked, animated women walked towards an animated bed.

Sam jammed the power button and the screen went dark.

"Sorry," he said, turning around to find Hailey with her eyes squeezed shut. "No TV for us."

"What were they doing?"

He chuckled uncomfortably as he shook his head. "Doesn't matter."

"What are we going to do now?" Hailey asked.

"I'm going to do some spells and see if I can get the door open."

"My grandma says she has spells sometimes."

"Not that kind," Sam said. "Basically, I'm just going to speak some funny words. If I'm lucky, I can break the lock on the door."

Hailey scooted down to the edge of the bed. "Can I help?"

Sam nodded, remembering a game that Dean played with him when Dean was first learning spell work. "Sure, why not? Come here and stand next to me." She scrambled to her feet and stood beside him with an intent expression. "Now, I'm going to say some words. When I point at you, I want you to jump in the air and point at the door. Can you do that?"

"Hop on one foot?"

"Nope. Both feet in the air. And don't forget to point at the door. Got it?"

"Got it, Sam," she said.

Sam hid a smile as he started reciting the first spell. Without books or reference materials there were only a few that he could try but he hoped one of them would break the barrier on the door. As he finished the first phrase, he pointed at Hailey who leaped into the air with a grunt, pointing at the door and then giggling as she landed.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Beeping. Low murmurings. Weird smells. Uncomfortable. Hospital, Dean realized with a start. He darted up then fell back with a hiss when pain shot up from his hand to his shoulder. Breathing in sharp, short pants, a wave of lightheadedness swept over him. He forced his body to take slower, deeper inhales, pushing back the dizziness as he managed the pulsing throb in his arm.

With a habit born of practice, he took stock of his aches. The dull echo left from bruises barely penetrated his inventory. The staccato beating inside of his head bothered him more but he didn't think he was concussed. Or at least not seriously this time. His arm was the thing. Obviously broken and immobilized he cursed the need for a plaster cast. He had broken his wrist when he was ten and the cast felt like an extra body part. But, he knew there was no avoiding it. He guessed they were just waiting for him to wake up or maybe waiting for the x-rays to come back.

Looking at his surroundings he realized he was lying on a gurney in the emergency treatment section of the hospital. He wore a plastic tag around his wrist with the name Smith, John printed on it. Thanks to Frank Devereaux that was his current alias. A needle sat nestled in the back of his hand, probably providing fluids or pain killers, maybe both.

He wondered how he managed to get to the hospital. After fighting the super-charged stranger at the Griffith building, his memories stopped. For some reason the stranger, probably a demon, didn't kill him but Dean didn't want to look too closely at that. Obviously, he was lucky to be alive.

With one arm broken and a needle in the opposite hand he couldn't stop the flow of whatever was hitting his veins. He wanted to because pain medicine would continue to make him groggy. He needed to get out of the hospital and find Sam, not lay around sleeping. He just didn't know how to accomplish it without ripping open his skin or further damaging his arm.

He searched out the call button with the fingers of his IV hand and pressed it. Wincing as he shifted positions, he pressed it again. A moment later a fifty-something nurse entered his cubicle wearing purple scrubs and a fake smile.

"How are you feeling, Mr. Smith?"

"Like my arm's broken. Listen I have to get out of here. I need you to unhook the needle in my hand."

"You need your arm set first, Mr. Smith. " Her smile remained but her eyes hardened as she checked the IV.

"Well, let's get it done. What are you waiting for?"

"Doctor Tomlinson will be in after he reviews your x-rays."

Dean shook his head. "I can't be here. It's going to have to wait."

"Mr. Smith, you could cripple yourself. Is there anyone that I can phone for you? A wife? A relative?"

"The only family I have is the reason I need to get out of here."

"You won't be able to help anyone if you fall over. Is there a minor child involved? Or someone who needs a ride? I can contact the police for you, will that help?"

"No, it's nothing like that. I just…"

"Then you're going to wait for the doctor and let us take care of you."

"Look, lady…"

"Mr. Smith," she said. "My name is Angela, not lady. Lay back, try to be patient. We're very busy with people from the Griffith building so I can't babysit. You need to have your arm set. There's no shortcut for that."

"What's in the IV? I don't want anything for pain."

Angela cocked her head. "Trust me, you do. Getting your arm fixed up is…"

"I know that, but I can't go to sleep."

"Well, it's a low dose of morphine and it hasn't knocked you out yet. You're also getting some fluids which you need. You're in good hands here, Mr. Smith."

She walked out and Dean flopped back on the bed, sending another wave of shimmering lights across his eyes. As the room settled, he concentrated on the ceiling and thought about the cell phone sitting uselessly in his pocket. Even if he could reach it, calling Sam would be pointless. Meg had Sam's phone. He didn't want to talk to her and, besides, she was probably on her way to Indiana. He wanted to reach his brother.

His mind conjured all kinds of horrific scenarios from Sam getting murdered to a resurgence of Lucifer in Sam's brain. It was just one awful thought after another. The heart monitor near his head started beeping and Dean realized he had a wire on his chest. He took some breaths to calm down, drinking in the stale air and reminding himself that drawing attention from the medical staff was not in his best interest.

Out of boredom, Dean listened to the sounds from the other cubicles. On one side he heard a woman complaining about breaking the heel of her shoe. Another female voice commiserated that it was sad to lose that particular shoe. Across the hall he heard a child sniffling and coughing while a woman spoke in Spanish. The woman's tone sounded comforting but Dean had no idea what she was saying. Someplace down the hall a man kept repeating that he didn't remember having his daughter with him at the Griffith building. He sounded distressed and when another male voice told him to calm down, he grew louder.

"I don't know why she was there. I don't know where she is," he said.

Dean wondered if it was the father of the missing child that Meg had overheard. If it was then maybe he had seen Sam with his daughter.

"Hey," Dean said, deliberately trying to beat the rest of the noise.

A silence fell over the area as if no one wanted to be blamed for making too much noise.

"Hey," Dean said. "The Dad. Are you mobile? Can you come down here?"

"Uh, yeah," a man's voice said. "Do you know where my daughter is?"

Dean didn't answer. If he admitted that he wanted information but had nothing to share he was afraid the man would ignore him.

A jean clad man with a bruised cheek entered Dean's cubicle as the general chatter of the examination rooms picked up again. With a scruffy haircut, a golf shirt that was fashionably not tucked and dark green eyes, he looked like the poster boy for McJob- America.

"Have you seen Hailey?"

"No. I'm sorry. I haven't. But, I think she might have been with my brother. Did you see a tall guy, big guy, late twenties?"

The man's posture straightened, his eyes narrowed and his hands came out of his pockets. "Why would your brother have my daughter?"

"Relax, pal, I didn't say he had your daughter. My brother was directing people out of the building and I just want to know if you saw him."

"But, you said…"

"All he was doing was getting people to the exits. If he saw a kid alone he would have taken her out of the building and tried to find her parents. Do you remember seeing him? Brown hair on the long side. Jeans, loose shirt. Tall."

The man shook his head. "No, but, there was a lot of confusion. We were all there but no one knew why. No one remembered anything and we just…the sprinklers were going…some people just collapsed. I don't know what happened. But, my daughter, she was there for a second but then somehow, I lost track of her. How could I let that happen?"

"Like you said, there was a lot of confusion. I'm sure she'll turn up."

"She'll turn up? She's six years old."

Shoulders stooped with fear and a stony expression made Dean wish he'd said something else. But, he didn't know what he could say. He watched as the man left, apparently returning to his own cubicle.

A moment later a tall, blond woman wearing a black sweater and jeans stalked down the narrow hall past Dean's area. A uniformed police officer followed close behind.

"Where's Hailey?" the newcomer said, her voice hard and shaking.

"I don't know," the father said.

"What do you mean you don't know? She was with you." The woman's voice broke into a sob and Dean made a point to stop listening.

A few more minutes passed before a short, round man in a white lab coat entered Dean's cubicle. Bald down the center and blinking small brown eyes, the man flipped through some pages before looking at Dean.

"Mr. Smith? I'm Doctor Tomlinson."

"Are you ready to set my arm?"

"Yes. The x-ray shows a clear break in both the ulna and radius, that's your forearm. It's a closed fracture which is good but you will need a plaster cast to let the bones heal properly. In addition to the break, you have a mild concussion and some fairly significant bruising virtually all over your body."

"Wow, you really gave me the whole 360, didn't you?"

Tomlinson smiled showing nearly perfect teeth. "That's what I'm here for."

"Okay, well, the only thing we have to do is take care of the arm. The rest will take care of itself so what do you say we get this show on the road?"

Dean ignored the doctor's frown as he braced himself for the painful process of setting and casting.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are appreciated.

Part 6

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Sam breathed out a sigh when he discovered that Hailey had fallen asleep. After hours of playing "Hide and Go Seek", jumping on the bed, some weird game of bumping fists and hands while reciting poetry that didn't make a lot of sense, two person "tag, you're it" and finally making up stories while she snuggled down into a pillow, he was exhausted.

He had little to zero experience with small children, especially girls, and Hailey's endless energy and chattering left him stunned. She never stopped talking or moving and she had the attention span of a gerbil. Sometimes she told him about her brother or mother or father. Sometimes she talked about her Kindergarten teacher or her school friends. Sometimes she shamelessly bragged about how smart or cute she was and then waited for him to agree with her.

Passive listening didn't exist. She wanted Sam's full attention and she wanted feedback even if it was just "that's good" or "wow" or "I can understand that".

Generally happy and seemingly not worried, the only time Hailey broke down was when she wanted to go outside to play. When Sam explained they were trapped and couldn't leave the room, she started asking for her mother again and wishing she could go home. Apparently she has a stuffed bear named "Beary" and she was missing him too. Sam tried to comfort her by patting her head and talking but before he could stop her, she flung herself against his legs, hugging him. He knelt down and let her wrap herself around him until her hitching breaths quieted.

The trauma of that led to yawns and Hailey finally slipped under the covers of the bed and asked him to tell her a story. Sam told her about traveling around with Dad and Dean but didn't mention monsters. He told her about Jess and going to school at Stanford. He talked about some of the towns that he and Dean had visited. She yawned and settled and finally drifted off.

The spells he tried hadn't made any difference. The doors and windows remained firmly blocked. While Hailey had found the game interesting, Sam had just grown frustrated. Finally, he ended it and that led to the endless list of activities until finally, sleep caught up with her.

Sam sat on the floor with his back to the end of the bed. His head pounded a steady beat to go with the fever still raging through him. His body ached deep into his bones and he wanted to lay his head down. He needed to sleep but he didn't dare. What if Daniel arrived? He could steal Hailey or worse. Sam couldn't let himself rest.

He thought about food when his stomach gave him a resounding empty thud. He figured Hailey would wake up hungry too. He didn't want to face a famished six year old. He discovered earlier that water was not going to be a problem. The bathroom worked, including the sink. They wouldn't dehydrate. But, a small child needed regular feedings and he worried about what he could do about that.

As these thoughts flowed through him, he wondered how often Dean dealt with the same issues. When they were young, it wasn't uncommon for their father to leave for a couple of days at a time. While he left money or groceries there were times when he was delayed. Sam thought of his over-protective brother and how he must have worried that they might run out of supplies. Knowing Dean, he probably already had a plan in place if that happened. Shoplift, break into someone's home and empty the refrigerator, earn money by mowing lawns or washing cars, whatever it was or whatever combination of these lived in Dean's imagination, Sam was sure his brother would have been ready for any calamity.

Unfortunately with a spell-locked motel room, Sam's options were limited. There was no refrigerator or microwave, no honor bar and no cupboards. If Daniel didn't return or if Dean didn't figure things out and find them, it was likely that Sam and Hailey would eventually starve to death.

Sam dismissed that dismal prospect. He knew Daniel was coming back because the fallen angel intended to throw him back in the cage. Sam shuddered and rubbed his arms. His headache took an angry swipe at him and he closed his eyes trying to prevent vomiting and calm the thumping.

"You're sick," Daniel said and Sam's eyes popped open in surprise. He stood up quickly then regretted it when pain and dizziness swept through him.

"Let the girl go home," Sam said.

"Tomorrow, we'll be ready. In the meantime, I heard your worry about food." Daniel pointed towards the desk and Sam saw sandwiches, bags of chips and soda there. "It's not the healthiest meal but that won't matter to you. The girl will just be happy to eat."

"Send her back to her mother," Sam said.

"If she survives this she should have a long life but, of course, her survival depends on you."

"I won't go into the pit again. I won't let Lucifer possess me."

"Even if I start torturing that innocent child? Will you still defy your fate?"

Sam straightened up, using his size to bolster him. "That's not going to happen."

"You think you can stop me." Daniel's words hung like a challenge.

"You're an angel. How can you threaten a child like this? She's an innocent."

Daniel shook his head. "She's a momentary blip in the span of eternity. She's meaningless. Except to her parents. And to you."

Sam rushed the angel, barreling into him with all his weight. They plowed into the wall behind them. Daniel grunted with the impact even as he thrust Sam backward. Then, with a flick of Daniel's wrist, Sam took flight with a gut churning slap of vertigo. He collided brutally with the far wall, his left side slamming into the cheap drywall.

Groggily trying to shake off the assault, Sam rolled on to his stomach and pushed himself slowly to his knees then to his feet. The flu coursing through his body gave his stomach a twist while the thumping in his head turned into the percussion of a parade band.

"Tomorrow, Sam," Daniel said then disappeared with the sound of flapping wings.

"Sam?" Hailey's small voice said.

He groaned as he planted himself on the second bed. He rubbed his temples and forehead as he answered her. "Sorry we woke you."

"That man…the magic man, he's going to kill me, isn't he?"

Sam's breath caught in his chest. Deliberately, he pushed down his panic at failing to protect her.

"No, of course not."

"I think he wants to hurt me. Like the mean queen wanted to kill Giselle."

Sam scrunched his eyes. "What?"

"You know. The movie. 'Enchanted.'"

Apparently in Hailey's six year old brain, everyone had seen the movie but Sam had no idea what she was talking about. When he didn't respond, she said, "Queen Narissa wanted to kill Giselle but Robert saved her with true love's kiss."

"Okay," Sam said, uncertain what she wanted to hear.

"Is that dinner?" She pointed towards the food on the desk.

"Um, yeah. Are you hungry?"

She scrambled off the bed and picked up one of the sandwiches.

"Is it ham?"

Sam stood slowly. He swallowed back the urge to be sick and joined Hailey at the desk. He took the wrapped package from her to read the label; ham and cheddar on wheat bread.

"Ham and cheese," he said as he handed it back.

She snatched it as if he might not let her keep the food. She took one of the bottles of soda then scooted on to the bed and sat with her legs folded.

"You want some chips?" Sam said.

"Yes, please," she said.

Sam took a plastic cup from a stack of four left by the motel. He filled it with potato chips and took it to her. She was struggling with the plastic on the sandwich so he opened it for her.

"Thank you," she said, clearly happy to be eating.

"You're welcome," he said.

Still feeling nauseous, he didn't want to eat but figured he should. The second sandwich was turkey and provolone on white bread. When he opened the plastic, a small packet of mayonnaise fell out. Hailey's sandwich had been plain.

"Do you want some mayo?" He asked her.

She shook her head. "Yuck."

Sam preferred turkey and provolone. He usually chose it with mayonnaise on the side whenever they stopped for quick food at convenience stores. From Hailey's reaction, he guessed that ham and cheddar was her preference. Apparently, Daniel had some interest in keeping them happy.

As soon as he took a few bites, Sam realized he had been ravenous. He wolfed down the sandwich and half the bag of chips, glad when his stomach didn't protest.

Hailey took her time. She ate with enthusiasm but took the time to chew and swallow and drink her soda. When she was full, she asked what to do with the remains.

"Go ahead and toss them in the trash over there."

He pointed towards a small container near the desk.

Hailey followed directions then went into the bathroom. She closed the door behind her.

Sam cleaned up his mess, sealed up the chips and looked at his watch. His side ached. His head hurt. His skin felt raw. He had reached the end of his endurance and knew he needed to sleep. Unfortunately, Hailey had just woken up so he needed to find enough energy to wait for her to tire again.

When Hailey emerged from the bathroom, he helped her button up.

"How did we get food?"

Sam sighed and smiled and wondered how to explain.

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Dean fit himself and his arm behind the wheel of the car. He adjusted the seat to make room for his extra large plaster appendage. He tossed his phone on Sam's seat so it would be within easy reach and pulled out of the hospital parking lot. His arm ached under the hardware but he limited himself to aspirin and a few hits off Bobby's flask.

With no real plan or information, he decided to head back to their motel room and fire up the computer. He hoped to find some bit of something that he could latch on to that would explain Sam's disappearance.

He had already tried to reach Lee Chambers a few times but he wasn't answering. If Dean found out the other man had set them up then Lee's life was over. Dean might like Krissy but that didn't give her father a pass if he put them in danger.

Dean winced as he shifted positions.

Deviant. Whatever attacked him in the Griffith building had called him a deviant. Disgust dripped off its tone as he said it. Modern usage left the word for perverts and Dean couldn't think of any monster that would describe him that way.

Demons lacked the moral backbone to think of anything as deviant. Practically everything demons did fell into that category so they wouldn't be passing judgment on him.

An angel, Dean thought. Self-righteous and supernaturally strong pointed to angels like an arrow. But, why? They hadn't seen much of the feathered set since Castiel released the Leviathan. Dean figured he and Sam were off the angel-grid since Cas was in a coma.

Maybe the demon deal arcade had attracted them. A bold move by demons might peak their interest. But, why take Sam?

Dean used his knees to control the steering wheel and flipped on the radio. He spun the dial to the first music that came in clearly and wondered if another hunter might know something.

"Daniel, my brother, you are older than me. Do you still feel the pain of the scars…"

Maybe Garth would know how to reach Lee. Garth had more quirks than a muppet but he was a good man, a fair hunter and Dean trusted him. Bobby did too, which said a lot.

"Daniel, you're a star in the face of the sky…"

Dean awkwardly reached for his cell then realized he couldn't drive and dial with one hand.

"And I can see Daniel waving goodbye  
>Oh it looks like Daniel, it must be the clouds in my eyes<br>Oh God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes"

"Elton John? Really?" Dean said out loud as he pulled on to the side of the road and parked. He abandoned his phone for a moment and flipped the dial to the next station finding a Bruce Springsteen song.

"You broke my heart, tore it apart  
>Thought it was cute, thought it was smart<br>But now I'm back and I've got the strength of ten  
>So I got a message for you my friend"<p>

Dean took a drink from Bobby's flask and started reaching for his phone again as the chorus started.

Chorus:  
>I'm Daniel waitin' in the lion's den<br>Daniel waitin' for that lion to come  
>Daniel waitin' in the lion's den"<p>

He glanced at the radio vaguely wondering at the second time of hearing "Daniel" coming from the speakers. Scrolling through his contacts he found Garth's name and dialed.

The radio squelched and squeaked and a static-ridden station interrupted Springsteen. A DJ said, "And this is Ramiel, the Watcher, playing a little nostalgia 70's before we get back to today's best rock. Here it goes,"

"Daniel is traveling tonight on a plane..."

"You gotta be kidding me," Dean said even as he thought the name Ramiel sounded familiar.

"Dean?" the accented voice of Garth Fitzgerald asked.

"Yeah, Garth, I got a question for you."

"Sure, you know I'm always here to..."

"Listen, I'm trying to find Lee Chambers. You have any idea where he is or who else might know?"

"Sure. He's in Kansas. Wellington."

"You give him Sam's number a few days ago?"

"Yes, but before you start yelling, he said it was real important and it had to do with demons. I'm on a case and he's not hunting so…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I asked you to give us a couple days."

"You're right, but like I said Lee made it sound real important. I'm sorry if I overstepped but…"

Dean rolled his eyes, hating Garth's unfailing earnestness.

"All right, don't go all 'Garth' on me. Just, tell me something else. You ever heard the name Ramiel before?"

"Sure. He's a fallen angel. He was one of the Watchers, symbolized hope, I think."

Dean glanced at the radio still belting out Elton John's hit.

"That's weird."

"Why, Dean, what's going on?"

"I'm in upstate New York and Sam is missing. My radio's gone rogue and I can't get away from the song, 'Daniel'."

"Elton John?"

"Yeah and Springsteen too."

"Huh… what do you mean Sam's missing? "

"What about a DJ named Ramiel, you ever hear of him?"

"I've heard of him. He's at a station in Kansas, I think. Maybe Missouri. He kind of..."

"No way am I picking up Kansas from here. He must've moved. And why would you know that anyway?"

"Cause of his name, of course. You know..."

"What?"

"It's probably a coincidence but you said that you keep hearing 'Daniel' songs."

"Yeah?"

"Daniel is the name of another fallen angel."

Dean's radio dial slid across the panel to a woman's voice, "And the fallen angels who followed the Enemy, banished to the depths of hell..."

"You still there, compadre?" Garth asked.

"Yeah, sorry."

"I want to help. I'm in El Paso on a job but I should be able to head your way in a couple days."

"Thanks. I'll let you know if I need help. Ramiel and Daniel, are they both Watchers?"

"Yes. Basically God sent a couple hundred angels here to watch over man but they began teaching man about sorcery and witchcraft and things. They were fornicating with human women too and finally, God cast them into Hell. The great flood, the one with Noah, was intended to rid the earth of Nephilim as well as all the other evil."

"These Watchers re-produced?"

"Oh, yes. This is all part of the Book of Enoch."

"Wow, all right. Well, I'm not sure how all this fits but..."

"Dean, don't ignore messages just because you don't know why they're there. Everything happens for a reason."

Dean ended the call just as the radio dial took another tour and landed on a new station.

"It's going to be a meeting of the Daniels when Daniel Radcliffe, Daniel Day Lewis and basketball player, Daniel Gibson get together on one stage to bring awareness to..."

Dean tuned out the newest announcer. He flipped off the radio and took a breath. Clearly someone was trying to get through to him. He couldn't figure out who or what was powerful enough to manipulate his car's radio. With Castiel in a coma he was fresh out of super-charged allies. But, the last few minutes couldn't be a coincidence especially considering the information that Garth supplied.

Dean pulled back on to the road and drove through the parking lot to his motel room. He fished Bobby's flask out of his pocket and took another drink before leaving the car to head inside.

He opened up the laptop and typed in the search for a disc jockey named Ramiel. The unusual name popped up quickly but Dean wasn't happy to see the location of the radio station. Ramiel was working in Lawrence, Kansas at a pop station called KISS FM.

He stood up, grabbed a notebook and pen out of his bag and sat back down. He wrote Watchers then the names Ramiel and Daniel beneath it. He wrote Lawrence on the other side. He tapped his pen against "Daniel". It was such a common name he would never have associated it with angels. Did he hear Ramiel to point him at the fallen angels' story? And if he did, then how, and why? Who was doing the pointing?

Lawrence: he and Sam were born there. Their only real home was there. But, it was also the place where their mother was murdered and Sam had sacrificed himself to Lucifer's cage. There was nothing but pain in Lawrence, Kansas but it couldn't be a coincidence that the DJ with the weird name came from there and also invaded Dean's car radio.

Dreading what he might find, Dean typed in Stull Cemetery. The first entry listed a news story from two days before. A small group of researchers from the Olathe Innovation Campus had gone to Stull for a study regarding the paranormal. One of the researchers, a young coed had initially been reported as missing when she failed to rejoin the others in her group. Several hours later she was found walking north along I-35. She was quoted as saying, "I felt like someone was following me so I ran." Then she didn't remember anything until a police cruiser stopped her on the interstate.

Dean sat back for a moment. He knew he had to make the sixteen hour drive to Kansas. If angels were involved then teleportation was just another chip in the game so Sam could be there, maybe the little girl too.

Looking at the computer screen again, Dean scrolled down a few entries and found an article from the Olathe News. A motel manager named Jeannie Francis was found behind the reception counter with her eyes burned out. Dean blew out a breath. Any doubt fell away.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are appreciated.

Part 7

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

After eating, Hailey busied herself with drawing pictures on the motel stationary before she asked if she could take a bath. Sam drew the water for her then left her alone. He called to her from the bathroom door every couple of minutes to make sure she was okay. When she finished playing and singing in the tub, she emerged, wrapped in a towel and yawning. There was nothing for her to change into so she put on her underwear and shirt before scrambling back under the covers of the bed.

Sam put a dry towel between her wet hair and the pillow. When she asked for another story, Sam told her about Sir Galahad and the Knights of the Round Table. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep again. Sam slipped the towel out of the way so the damp material wouldn't wake her as it cooled down.

While his cell phone remained stubbornly useless for making calls, the clock still worked so Sam set an alarm for 6:00am. He pulled the covers down on the second bed and crawled in. He worried about sleeping and leaving them both vulnerable but he was too sick and too exhausted to fight it anymore.

Sometime during the night, Sam felt a weight join him and he opened one eye to see Hailey slipping into the bed behind him. He was still wearing his jeans, t-shirt and socks but he couldn't help thinking about how wrong it would look. Then she sighed and murmured, "Good night, Sam."

He heard her breathing even out and didn't have the heart to put her back in the other bed. He slipped back into sleep and didn't wake up again until his phone started beeping.

Hailey didn't stir so Sam got up slowly, looked around the room to make sure nothing had changed then went to take a shower. He felt a little better after getting some rest but his muscles ached and he still felt weak. Washing the sweat off helped but putting dirty clothes on made him feel like he wasn't clean.

He returned to the main room to find the child snuffling softly in sleep. She had kicked off the blankets and sheet and was curled up with her knees to her chest. Sam covered her back up and she stretched out again. He smiled at that then frowned again when he thought about breakfast. She'd wake up hungry and he didn't have anything to give her.

Almost as if Sam summoned him, Daniel appeared in the room.

"I've been wondering," Sam said as if a person hadn't just appeared from nowhere. "How did you get Quincy to agree to possession? He wasn't an angel when he locked us in that office."

"Quincy Walter has been my servant for many years. He always welcomes me as he is a devout and devoted man."

"Does he know that you want to end the world?"

"He knows I intend to save God's creation by fulfilling His destiny."

"Does he know you're working with demons?"

"How I accomplish God's will is of no concern to this vessel."

"I'm not saying 'yes'," Sam said.

"Touch the girl's forehead," Daniel said nodding towards Hailey.

Sam glanced back to where she was still sleeping. She had kicked off the blankets again and her eyes were scrunched tight around a frown. Sam glared at the angel before he went to her and pulled the covers back up. He could feel warmth radiating from her skin. When he touched her forehead, the dry heat sent a pang of fear through him.

Sam turned back to Daniel. "Stop it."

"Maybe you gave her influenza."

"Stop it," Sam said. The words sounded weak and useless to him.

"You can stop it, Sam. All you have to do is allow Lucifer to return to his true vessel."

Hailey moaned softly and fisted her hands around the blankets. Then she stopped, her features relaxed and she stopped her restless moving. With a sigh she relaxed.

"She's better now," Daniel said.

Sam tried to breathe through the anger and adrenaline.

Another bag of food appeared on the small table.

"Feed her. Make her feel safe. The next time I come I will either send her home to the mother that she misses so much, or I will make that tiny fever seem like nothing compared to the suffering she will endure."

Daniel disappeared again. Sam's legs gave out as he collapsed on the bed across from Hailey. He looked at the peaceful sleeping face of the six year old and his fear caught in his chest fighting against his breath. His foot brushed against some papers, rattling them lightly. Absently he reached down to pick them up finding scribbled drawings staring back at him. He had no idea what they were. One might have been a horse, or a giraffe, or a wingless bird. He couldn't be sure. His attention drifted to the top of the paper finding the name "Cattle Annie Inn". Just below that "Lawrence, Kansas" with a zip code and then another line showing the phone number.

He was in Lawrence, Kansas. Acknowledging that he must be really sick to have not thought about looking at the motel stationary sooner, Sam nodded. It made sense that the angel would bring him close to Stull Cemetery. Would Dean be able to figure it out? Sam had to believe that he would.

Sam looked back at Hailey who was rubbing her eyes and yawning. She frowned when she saw him there before she scooted her way out of the bed and padded off to the bathroom. She picked up her pants from the floor on her way. Sam went to the bags left by Daniel. He found Lucky Charms, Oatmeal and milk that was still cold. Bowls and spoons had been provided as well. He also found a second bag that contained a tiny pair of blue jeans, a pink sweatshirt with some cat emblem on it, little girl underwear, and a purple t-shirt.

"Huh," Sam said out loud.

He turned when he heard the bathroom door open. Hailey returned wearing the striped shirt she slept in and the pink jeans.

"There are clean clothes for you," he said. "And cereal for breakfast. Do you want to get dressed or eat first?"

"I want to go home, Sam. I miss mommy and daddy."

Unreasonably annoyed, he said, "If I could take you home, I would, Hailey, but I can't. I just need you to be brave for a little while longer."

Her eyes started to fill up again and Sam sighed. He knelt down in front of her. "I'm sorry."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and shook while she cried. He felt the warmth of her tears soaking into his shirt. Sam held her, patting her back and whispering nonsense, hoping to calm her down. As her crying turned into hiccups she pressed herself closer to him. Sam didn't know how long she stayed there, trembling and snuffling but when she pulled away her face was blotchy and wet. He reached for the tissue box on the desk and handed her a few. She used them to blow her nose and wipe her face.

"You're okay," Sam said.

She nodded without speaking then headed towards the bathroom. Sam didn't know what to do until she called for him to turn on the shower for her. She was clean after her bath the night before, but Sam wasn't going to stop her if she wanted a shower too.

He stood slowly feeling stiff and drained from her meltdown and from being on his knees for so long. He felt hot and knew his fever was back along with the headache that never went away completely.

When he went in the bathroom, he found her standing there in just her panties, waiting expectantly while he turned on the water. He checked the temperature to make sure it wasn't too hot.

"Okay, you're all set," he said.

With no noticeable modesty, Hailey shucked off her panties and stepped into the shower. Sam flipped around putting his back to her as quickly as possible. Once he was sure she was settled and safe, he returned to the main room.

With nothing else to do, Sam poured himself some Lucky Charms and wolfed down the bowl of cereal. He figured he must be getting better because his appetite had made a ravenous reappearance. He poured a second bowl and was halfway through it when Hailey emerged dripping out of the bathroom with a towel covering her from stem to stern.

"The shampoo smells funny," she said.

"Motel shampoos usually do," Sam said.

"Can I see the clothes?"

"Yeah, sure."

Sam handed her the bag. She smiled. "Hello Kitty," she said.

Sam didn't know why she was greeting the sweatshirt.

"Why don't you go in the bathroom and get dressed. Dry off first."

She gave him a scornful look.

"Sorry," he said, "I guess you'd know that. Anyway, get dressed and then you can have some cereal or oatmeal."

"I'm bored," she said.

"Well, you can draw or something after breakfast."

"I want to watch the Jake and the Neverland Pirates."

"Is that a TV show?"

"Yeah, it's really cool."

"Okay, well, we can't watch TV but maybe you can tell me about it when you come out."

She brightened at that idea. Sam knew she liked to talk so he figured she'd like talking about her favorite show. She skipped into the bathroom with her bag of clothes.

Sam wondered how Dean managed when Sam was that age. Dean would have been ten years old. Sam remembered idolizing his brother but he also remembered the insults and short temper. Dean had been calling Sam "a girl" and "a bitch" forever. Despite having to make sure that Sam ate, slept, stayed clean and safe, Dean was still Sam's brother. They grew up together. Dean acted like a sibling almost as often as he acted like a parent. Sam couldn't imagine having to deal with all that, having to balance that.

He wondered where Dean was and if he had found any clues to Sam's whereabouts. Sam didn't doubt that his brother was looking. But, how would he find him in Kansas with an angel warding his location?

**SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS**

Dean guessed the drive from New York to Kansas would take around sixteen hours. He might manage to cut another hour off that if he didn't get stopped by the police or run into road construction.

His arm ached continually and the aspirin barely touched the pain. He hadn't slept.

But, Sam was out there.

"Screw it," Dean said to the empty room.

He gathered their belongings. His broken arm hindered his progress but he finally managed to get everything into the trunk.

Once more he slid behind the wheel, settling there with an audible sigh. A thermos and his phone lay in Sam's seat. He would need to stop and get coffee before hitting the I-86. He started the engine and turned on the lights, flinching when Meg stood illuminated in the beams. She walked around to his window. Dean rolled it down.

"Hi there," she said.

"Where have you been?" Dean said.

"Here and there. I guess you still haven't found Sam, or is he in the trunk?"

Dean didn't bother to react. "I think he's in Lawrence. I'm heading there now."

"Wow, the legendary birth place. You sure you're going to make it?" Dean stiffened. Her question sounded like a threat.

"Easy there," she said. "I just mean you look hell. Coming from me, that's saying something. What happened to your arm?"

"Fight. With an angel, maybe."

"Whoa, angels? That is not good news."

"I know. I think they have Sam. I just don't know what they want with him."

"Well, look, I don't have any desire to tangle with angels. I have one of my own to look after and that's plenty."

"But?" Dean said, knowing she wasn't finished.

"But, I could ride along, at least part of the way."

"Why would you do that?"

"I don't know. Maybe because if anyone can stop the Leviathan, it's you and Sam. Or maybe because when Cas does wake up he's going to want you two to be alive."

"I don't need your help, Meg."

"Yeah you do. You're going to wrap this ugly thing around a tree and yourself with it. I can keep you awake. Drive even. Get you to the church on time."

"You're not driving," Dean said.

Meg just smiled with her usual touch of mocking and walked around to the passenger side. She picked up the thermos and the phone and settled in.

Silently, Dean called himself a host of derogatory names and pulled out of the parking lot.

The night hung around them for a few hours. Despite her promise of company, Meg remained mostly quiet which suited Dean. Having her in the car increased his anxiety enough to help him stay awake for the first half of the trip.

About eight hours in, adrenaline stopped working and exhaustion soon followed. He hated to admit it but if he didn't sleep for a couple of hours then Meg's prediction of a car crash would come true. He looked at the demon that had taken the owner's manual out of the glove compartment and was drawing stick figures around the technical illustrations. Dean shook his head when he realized the stick people were engaged in sex acts.

"You're really a twelve year old boy, aren't you?" Dean said.

Meg shot him a disinterested look and continued her activity.

"All right, look," he said. "I have to sleep for a couple hours."

"And?"

"I don't want to stop."

"And?"

"You know what I'm saying," Dean said.

"You're going to trust me to drive? Why, Dean, I'm touched."

"Can you do it or not?"

"Of course. I wish we were in the Impala though."

"If we were in the Impala, this wouldn't be on the table."

"Okay, okay, pull over."

"Do you know how to get there?"

"I can read, Dean. Just pull over."

He drove to the next rest stop and parked beside an eighteen wheeler with a red cab and a gray body. Meg opened the passenger side and climbed out. She stretched her arms over her head with a groan.

"I don't know how you do this every day," she said.

Dean moved slower. His arm hurt and his body was stiff from sitting so long. He wondered where Sam was and if he was still sick. He hated the idea of his brother being held captive while suffering from the flu or whatever had been ailing him. Urgency struck him and Dean almost ordered Meg back into the car so he could finish the drive. But, he knew he couldn't. A car accident, even a minor one, would mean delay. He couldn't risk that.

Meg made a small noise and Dean looked over to find a burly looking man with a thick beard holding a blade to her throat. He had one arm wrapped around her middle holding her still.

"You have fallen far, Dean Winchester. Travelling with this abhorrence," the man said.

"Kind of judgey considering all the demons you've been working with," Meg said.

"Great. Just what I was hoping for. Angels," Dean said.

"You will abandon the search for your brother," the angel said. "Daniel has commanded it."

"Am I supposed to be impressed?" Dean said.

"Lucifer and Michael are set to rise. You will not stand in the way."

Dean hid the jolt of fear that struck him at the angel's words.

"We've already played this scene, pal," Dean said. "Lucifer and Michael are trapped in the cage downstairs. We put them there and there's no coming back."

"Daniel will bring them forth. Sam will accept Lucifer. Adam will retain Michael. You are not needed."

The angel put the knife to Meg's throat. "This...this thing that you chose as companion will die if you do not stand down."

Dean and Meg barked out laughs. Dean suspected that Meg knew what he'd say next.

"I don't care if you kill her."

The angel narrowed his eyes. Meg took advantage of his confusion to shove her body backward and drive her foot into his knee. Thrown off balance, the angel stumbled and Meg rammed her elbow into his ribs. He backhanded her hard and she took flight. Dean didn't see her land because he was busy aiming the angel blade with his left hand. He threw and the knife lodged in the angel's neck with a dull thud. The angel radiated white light for just a moment, his stunned expression frozen as he and his vessel collapsed.

Dean looked around for any other threats first then searched for Meg. She was walking towards him with a scowl.

"Listen, Meg..."

Before he could finish she grabbed him bodily and slammed him against the car. The jolt radiated all the way through his broken arm.

"I am helping you. I'm not your collateral damage," she said.

Dean grimaced as he said, "You're right. I wouldn't have let him kill you, but he had to think I would."

"Yeah, well, I believed you too," Meg pushed off him. "Let's go."

Dean walked around the car, cradling his arm and glad she didn't decide to fight him over it. He tugged the knife out of the vessel's neck and wiped if off on his jeans before climbing into the car.

After the adrenaline rush of battle and the bomb of new information, Dean couldn't relax. The idea of using Sam to raise the devil again threatened to overwhelm him. Would he find Sam addicted to demon blood? Would he find Sam at all? If they were too late, they might just find the creepy white-suited Lucifer, looking like Sam, but no longer his brother. The future that Zachariah showed him before they thwarted the Apocalypse might still become real.

"If Lucifer rises, I'll know," Meg said as if she was reading his thoughts. "I'm a demon, okay? I'll know."

"Sam will never agree to let him in again."

"Wouldn't think so but they have had him for a couple days now. Depends on where they're applying pressure."

Dean didn't have anything to say to that. He stared out the passenger window, trying not to imagine the worst.

The remaining drive to Kansas passed in a sleepy daze. Dean slept for a couple of hours then slipped in and out until early morning. They crossed the Lawrence city limits around noon and Meg told him to "look alive."

She pulled into a gas station where Dean used the bathroom. He took time to splash water on his face and stretch. He still felt groggy so he bought coffee and a cold sandwich when he paid for the fuel. He traded places with Meg but didn't pull out of the parking space.

"What are you waiting for?" Meg said.

"The only place we can go is Stull Cemetery," he said. "If they're going to raise Lucifer, that's the place."

"And?"

Dean didn't want to go to Stull. That's where Sam and Adam fell in the cage. That's where Lucifer killed Bobby and Castiel. Dean hated Kansas, hated Lawrence and especially hated Stull Cemetery.

"Nothing," Dean said and started the car.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

The Mystery Which Binds

By: Coffeemaniac

A/N: Season 7. Takes place between The Born Again Identity and Party on Garth. Bobby is dead and the boys don't know that his spirit is attached to the flask. Reviews and comments are welcome and appreciated.

A/N: This is the final section. Thank you to those who stayed from start to finish. Hope you enjoyed it. Special thanks to those who have sent reviews. I am nourished by your words.

Part 8

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Hailey spent forty-five minutes eating cereal. She didn't seem to care that it was soggy. She cared deeply about making Sam understand the premise behind Jake and the Neverland Pirates. She also made sure he accepted that a sponge living in a pineapple under the sea was perfectly normal.

Sam let her talk. He asked questions when it seemed appropriate but mostly he just let her talk. It entertained her and kept him from thinking too far ahead.

Sooner or later, Daniel would return and haul the two of them to Stull Cemetery. He'd torture the six year old girl until Sam agreed to let Lucifer possess him.

Hailey turned to drawing pictures and as Sam watched her, he didn't know if he could stand up to Daniel and his plan. Billions of people depended on him to refuse Lucifer. But, one tiny girl depended on him to say "yes".

Sam stood up when Daniel finally appeared. Hailey set her pen down. Ink dotted her fingertips and the back of her hand. She turned wide eyes on the angel but didn't move.

Sam put himself between her and the threat.

"It's time," Daniel said. "Do I send her home or take her with us?"

Sam shook his head. "I can't let him out of the cage."

"Are you sure?"

"She's innocent."

"Yes, she is. Millions of innocents have suffered and died through the ages. They're just fodder for the cause."

Daniel snapped his fingers. Sam stumbled and looked around. The dusty, barren cemetery surrounded him. Hailey stood by his side. She grabbed his hand and darted behind him.

"Sam?" She said.

"It's going to be okay," he said.

"Not really telling the truth, are you?" Daniel said. He was flanked by several other angels.

Daniel crouched down. He put his hands, palms up on his thighs. "Come here, Hailey."

She moved further behind Sam and shook her head.

"Leave her alone," Sam said.

"Are you saying 'yes'?"

"No, just...leave her alone."

Sam whipped around when Hailey cried out and let go of his hand. Collapsed on the ground, she was screaming and holding her leg. Sam dropped to his knees. He could see the bone twisted under her skin.

"That's one. Should I break the other?" Daniel said.

"You son of a bitch," Sam said, screaming his rage at the angel.

Another angel stood over the spot that Sam had opened with the horsemen's' rings. The incantation he chanted sounded vaguely familiar.

A horrendous snap sounded over the wind and Hailey screeched. Her other leg bent in violent angle.

"All right, all right. I'll say 'yes' just stop. Put her back together."

Wind howled and dust devils spun in all directions. Sam leaned over Hailey, protecting her from the pelting dirt. Underneath all the noise he could hear her calling for her mother. She was shaking and sobbing in his arms but Sam could tell that Daniel had fixed her legs. A mighty crunching sound like earth moving joined the wind then Sam felt a tremor pass under them. He knew the hole had opened and it was time to be dangled over the edge.

Daniel crouched in front of them. Hailey saw the angel and squealed. She buried her face against Sam's jacket. Another angel, one who looked like a middle aged businessman, grabbed Hailey around the waist and pulled her away from Sam. She cried and struggled to escape but he held her firmly.

"Send her home," Sam said to Daniel.

"As soon as my brothers are free," Daniel said.

Sam stood up slowly. Dirt filled his mouth. The fever and chills that had been plaguing him for days rolled through his body and he wrapped his arms around himself. Terror filled him. He remembered having Lucifer inside him. He remembered the disconnect and the fear. He had nearly killed Dean and could still feel his brother's blood on his hands.

Daniel and three other angels herded him towards the edge. Daniel placed a hand against Sam's forehead and spoke some Latin that Sam didn't care about translating as he collapsed to his knees. He felt the abyss pulling him, dragging his body unerringly towards oblivion.

Sam fought automatically, unable to stop himself from struggling. Even while he knew that he had given his consent; that he had to allow Lucifer entry or allow Hailey to be tortured, it didn't matter. Instinctively he battled for his own survival. Two angels held him fast by the arms, keeping him still while Daniel completed the incantation.

When the angels threw him face first into the dirt, Sam curled up. Deliberately making himself smaller, he didn't know what he was hoping to accomplish. He covered his head with his hands and waited for the inevitable fall that he only vaguely remembered from the last time. He lay there waiting, noticing that the wind grew softer and quieter and thinking that maybe he was already dying.

Lucifer would never allow his consciousness to remain a second time. He hadn't consumed demon blood for strength. He was certain he'd be crushed.

All at once the wind stopped. It was like someone closed a door to block it. Silence reigned down like something palpable. Unable to fight his curiosity, Sam dared to lift his head.

Daniel, the fallen angel, dressed in the body of Quincy Walters stared down at Sam with eyes that sparked in flashes of color. Daniel batted at the knife embedded in his neck as he collapsed in the dirt.

A mighty howl rose from the depths of the pit even as the earth exploded upwards and rebuilt itself, covering the cavernous pit. The sound of anguish stabbed into Sam's brain. He wrapped his arms around his head and curled up again to escape it.

Silence re-emerged until weeping pushed its way through the heavy air. Sam took his arms down and blinked dust from his eyes. He rolled on to his back and found Dean hovering above him.

Dean pushed hair off Sam's face with one hand.

"Sammy? Hey, you all right?"

"What? Yeah. How did you...where is she?"

"You mean the kid?"

"Yeah." Sam pushed away from his brother.

His eyes still watered from all the dust and wind. He wiped his face off with his shirt and tried to find Hailey. He could hear her crying but couldn't find her.

"Meg's got her. Over there," Dean said. He pointed a few feet away and for the first time, Sam noticed the cast on his brother's arm.

Meg stood over the child, patting her on the head like a puppy. She shrugged at them.

Sam put out his hand and Dean pulled him up. He stumbled forward but Dean caught him, steadying him.

"You all right?" Dean looked him over.

"Yeah, just, you know...I'm okay."

"And really coherent. Not to mention articulate."

Sam heard his brother's snarky concern but he didn't respond to it.

"How about you?" Sam nodded towards Dean's arm.

"What's another broken bone, right?" Dean said.

Sam walked over to Hailey who was sniffling with her arms wrapped around her body. She stood there and Sam knew her legs were healed but he could still hear her shrieks in his head.

"Hailey," he said.

She leaped towards him and he caught her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. She started shaking and crying again, her breath coming in gasps while Sam rubbed her back.

"He hurt me," she said.

"I know. I'm sorry," Sam said.

He held her for a long time only vaguely aware of Dean and Meg moving around him. Then finally Dean told him it was time to go. Sam wordlessly carried Hailey to the car.

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Returning Hailey to her parents required a lot of fast talking. The police phoned her parents who hopped the first flight to Kansas. The whole process took about ten hours. Most of that time was spent at a hospital in Olathe where Hailey was examined while Sam and Dean were questioned. It helped that Hailey vouched for Sam.

When her parents arrived, it was all tears and hugs and Sam was relieved that Hailey's father seemed to be genuinely worried about her. When it was time to leave, Hailey pulled Sam aside because she wanted to talk to him. Her parents and police guardian watched from a few feet away and Sam could feel their uncertainty.

He crouched down in front of Hailey and she put her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm glad your brother found you," she said.

"Thanks. Me too."

"Don't feel bad about what the stranger did, okay?"

"You mean what he did to you?"

She nodded. "I feel better now."

"That's good."

"Okay. Bye, Sam." She smiled and hugged him. He hugged her back then let her go and she scampered across the room to her parents.

She waved one more time before taking her mother's hand. The father shook the police officer's hand and followed his wife and daughter outside.

"You okay?" He was so engrossed in watching the family leave that Dean's question startled him.

"Yeah, sure," Sam said. "We should get going."

"By the way, Meg took your phone. She's on her way to Indiana."

"Why'd she take my phone?"

Dean shrugged. "Demon."

They walked out of the hospital and settled into the newest car that Dean stole. Sam thought it was reckless to steal a car while they were under police scrutiny.

"I waited until most of them left," Dean said.

Dean drove from the hospital to the Blue River bank. He unloaded lawn chairs and a cooler full of beer and settled under a tree next to Sam. The two of them watched the river flow calmly and slowly. They each drank from long neck bottles and said little for most of the afternoon.

Dean startled when Sam spoke because his brother had been so quiet since they arrived.

"I think the flu is finally passing."

"Feeling better, are you?"

"Yeah. Fever broke a little while ago. About time. I hate being sick."

"You always have."

"Lucifer used to make me sick. For years, sometimes." Sam paused and Dean absorbed the new information with anger and sadness.

After a moment, Sam said, "Remember when we tracked Pestilence?"

"Rings a bell," Dean said. When Pestilence whammied them, it had felt like his insides were turning to liquid.

"It was worse than that."

"Jesus, Sam."

Silence slipped over them again. All Dean could hear was the lapping of the water against the shore and the occasional yell from someone at a distance.

Sam finished a beer, flipped open the cooler and took another one.

"Daniel left me alone with her for a couple of days because he wanted to make it impossible not to choose her," Sam said. "There was no TV, nothing to break up the time. We were just stuck together. She was so different than us, Dean. You should have heard her whining and complaining. Dad would've locked us in the trunk if we'd carried on like that. And she talked, I mean, non-stop. I thought my ears would start bleeding."

"You were like that for a while. Just chattering all the time. About anything and everything."

"Was I? I don't remember."

"Well, you grew out of it. Mostly."

"I don't know how you did it. How you could entertain a little kid for hours inside a motel. It was nearly impossible."

"Well, we had TV."

Sam chuckled and drank from his bottle.

"She seemed like a nice kid," Dean said.

"I had to choose, you know. Daniel said he'd torture her unless I said 'yes'. He broke her legs when I said 'no'"

Anger shot through Dean. "I should have killed him slower."

"I couldn't keep saying 'no'"

"If you could, you wouldn't be you."

"I almost released the devil again."

"It was an impossible choice, Sam. And we stopped it, so..."

"If you hadn't gotten there, Lucifer would be wearing me right now."

"Stop right there. It didn't happen. You'll make yourself crazy with could've's."

Sam took a long drink and put his head back. He closed his eyes. Dean watched him for a moment before turning his attention back to the river. The sun felt warm and he breathed in the scent of mud and water and fish.

In a few hours, Dean knew they'd pack up and head back to Whitefish. The loss of Bobby swept over him and he absently touched the flask hidden in his jacket. They still had work to do and avenging Bobby's death topped the list.

But, for now, at least for a little longer, Dean wanted to enjoy the peace.

A/N: The last scene with the boys sitting by the lake was written before they played it out for real in Paper Moon. It was just a happy coincidence for me but it looked very much like I tried to describe in this story.


End file.
